Snapshots
by Center of the Galaxy
Summary: Used to be called "Stories". Drabbles about Parker and Eliot. Requests are taken. Chapter 104: She needs to find a way out. Now.
1. Kill Joy

_**Author's Note: **__My first drabble series with one of my favorite couples! Please enjoy!_

When she first met him, she thought he was a kill joy.

On their first con together, he yelled at her for jumping too early and how she could've exposed them, ect. She didn't care what he wanted. She knew that she loved jumping off buildings and she loved money. She could care less what he thought.

That was how she came up with the theory that he was a kill joy.

She figured that the reason he always wanted her to think her actions through was because he loved to ruin her fun.

Now, she is not so sure.

_**Author's Note: **__Review please!_


	2. Running

_** Author's Note: **__I couldn't resist! Enjoy!_

She loves to run.

It's one of the things she does best and it's the one thing that always seems to get her out of a tight spot.

Every morning, she goes for a jog just to make sure that she's still in perfect form for her other favorite pastime—jumping.

As she gets ready for her jog, she feels a tap on her shoulder. She turns around and sees Eliot holding two coffee cups.

"Want one?" He asks.

She nods and takes the coffee.

"Going on a jog?" He questions.

Another nod.

"Can I join you?"

"Sure," She answers.

_**Author's Note: **__I love reviews! You can request what kind of drabble you would like to see next!_


	3. Race

_**Author's Note: **__Wow, I'm on a roll! Please enjoy!_

He's surprisingly fast.

For someone whose specialty is in beating up people, he can keep up with her fairly well.

Parker decides that she should turn this into a challenge and increases her speed. Her feet pound on the pavement as she felt the wind whip past her. She is confident that he hasn't been able to keep up and she smiles victoriously. She tries to think of what she wants as a prize for her victory and then settles on money.

As she reaches the end of the path, she sucks in her breath.

He grins triumphantly.

"You lost."

_**Author's Note: **__Reviews are greatly appreciated! _


	4. Loser

_**Author's Note: **__I can't seem to stop writing these! I hope that's a good thing!_

She feels like an idiot as she and Eliot walk back to the office.

How could he have won? She's the fastest runner ever! She looks up at the victor and sees him still wearing that stupid grin. Parker feels anger bubble up inside her. She is not happy.

As they make their way into the office, she sees that the others still haven't arrived for work yet. She heads for her favorite cereal box to drown her sorrows into when she realizes it's not there.

"Guess you won't be eating that."

Parker is definitely not happy.

Eliot just smirks.

_**Author's Note: **__Well? Please review!_


	5. Jumping

_**Author's Note: **__This is one of my favorite drabbles! Enjoy!_

She loves the rush that comes right before she jumps off a building.

"I don't wanna do this," He grumbles.

Unfortunately, Eliot seems intent on killing her joy.

"Nate said you had to test it." She reminds him as she checks his gear for any flaws. After she's satisfied that he's going to live, she grins with eagerness. "Ready?"

He sighs.

"Parker, has anyone ever told you that you're not normal?"

She thinks of the rest of the team and remembers many times when they had told her she wasn't normal.

She nods.

She runs; he follows.

They jump together.

_**Author's Note: **__Have I mentioned how much I love reviews?_


	6. Dreaming

_**Author's Note: **__Yay! Fluff!_

She has a dream with him in it.

She's shocked by this since all she's ever dreamed about since she was 11 was money.

In the dream, he gives her a lot of money and then hugs her. A nice, big, warm hug that Parker has seen in movies. The kind of hug that Sophie has told her make women melt.

Instead of being surprised at the dream, she feels really relaxed and a bit giddy. True, it was only a dream, but it was a great dream.

As she shuts her eyes once more, she can't help but smile

_**Author's Note: **__Review or I'll send the Leverage team to come and get you in your sleep! _


	7. Saving

_**Author's Note: **__I think I love this couple way too much for my own good . . . _

She loves her job.

She wouldn't trade her lifestyle as thief for anything in the World.

"Get her!"

Well, there were sometimes when she would get into a situation when she kind of wished that she wasn't a thief at that moment.

She heard the guards' feet behind her and she knew that they were catching up to her.

"Get down!"

Parker ducks as Eliot's punch connects with one of her pursuers. In a matter of seconds, he has the guards all taken care of. He helps her up.

"You ok?" He asks worriedly.

She starts smiling.

She is now.

_**Author's Note: **__Any requests for situations that I could write a drabble about? Please review!_


	8. Flaws

_**Author's Note: **__More Parker/Eliot goodness!_

Normally, he's very gruff.

Most of the time, she doesn't mind. After all, she's too busy checking her bank statements to see how her money is to actually pay attention to those around her.

Sophie calls this one of her "flaws".

She finishes checking her statements when she sees him punching a bag. She can see fury in his eyes and she wonders for a brief second who caused it.

Then, she wonders how she can fix it.

"Eliot?" He looks over at her. "Are you ok?"

"Fine," He replies.

She realizes his lack of opening up is his "flaw".

_**Author's Note: **__Please review, please! I really love to hear what you guys think! In fact, I refuse to update until I get more reviews! Sorry, but I do enjoy reviews! _


	9. Cookies

_**Author's Note: **__This was inspired by Christmas cookies!_

One thing that she loves almost as much as money is sugar.

After eating up the team's supply of goodies, a furious Nate orders Eliot to make her some of her own desserts.

He frowns.

"Come by my place tomorrow." He orders.

She arrives at his house and decides that she should knock rather than break in since Sophie told her it was the right thing to do. She rings and he opens the door with a cookie in his hand.

"For you." He tells her.

She eats it and shouts:

"Yummy!"

He smiles.

"Where's the rest?"

He's frowning again.

_**Author's Note: **__Review please!_


	10. Next to Normal

_**Author's Note: **__Thanks for all the reviews! I really appreciate it!_

She's something next to normal.

Eliot is aware of that fact as she looks at the cookies he made like they're the best things on Earth.

"You like them?" He asks her cautiously.

"They're great!" She yells enthusiastically.

He's about to reply when she suddenly wraps her arms around him. Eliot is frozen and confused. Why would Parker—unemotional Parker—be holding him?

"Hey Parker, are you ok?" He's worried now and quickly places his hand on her forehead.

It's normal.

"I . . . I'm just happy." She admits.

She's far from normal.

And Eliot's just fine with that.

_**Author's Note: **__Tomorrow, I'll upload something about mistletoe! Review please!_


	11. Mistletoe

_**Author's Note: **__A Christmas Eve filled one. Tomorrow, I'll put up an actual Christmas one. _

It's the Team's Christmas Eve party and Parker is happily eating some more of Eliot's cookies when she spies him leaning against the doorframe. She heads over to him, a grin on her face, and is about to say something when Sophie exclaims:

"Look who's under the mistletoe!"

The whole team looks at them and Parker sees a green plant hanging in the middle of the doorframe.

"Kiss her!" Nate shouts.

Eliot looks reluctant to do anything.

Parker decides to take action and pulls him into a lip-lock.

When they finish, everyone's staring at them in shock.

Parker likes Christmas.

_**Author's Note: **__Please review! _


	12. Merry Christmas

_**Author's Note: **__Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all! Have great Christmas and please enjoy!_

Christmas morning they all meet again at the office—this time to exchange gifts. Parker is a little nervous about this since all she knows about is thievery and according to Sophie you don't give friends stolen presents.

When she arrives, it's just her and Eliot.

"Hey," He greets and then promptly moves away from her.

She gets the feeling that he's avoiding her.

They sit there in awkward silence.

"Parker," He finally says. She looks up and walks over to him. "I wanna try something."

She waits as he leans in.

He kisses her and feels wonderful.

Merry Christmas.

_**Author's Note: **__Please review and have a great day! _


	13. Personal Ties

_**Author's Note: **__Hope everyone had a great Christmas! Guys, please review. I know these are drabbles and there are a lot of them, but I need to know that you guys like them. Please review? _

She's confused.

It's been two weeks since he kissed her and it seems as if he wants nothing to do with her. She doesn't understand. Kissing meant that you wanted to be in a relationship with the person you kissed, right?

"Parker?" It's Sophie. "Something wrong?"

She shakes her head no, but she knows she's lying to herself.

She's hurting inside. She feels a pain in her chest.

Personal ties, she concluded, just hurt you. People always leave no matter how much you care about them.

Or maybe, people just left her.

"I'm fine." She replied.

She's really not fine.

_**Author's Note: **__Ooh! Drama! Any guesses on what's going to happen? Please review! _


	14. Reckless

_**Author's Note: **__This was a hard one to write and I think it came out well. Enjoy!_

She likes being reckless.

It's who she is.

Ever since Eliot started avoiding her, Parker's been taking unnecessary risks. Never on a job, but on her own.

She's started to jump with less equipment and she likes the rush that comes with the idea that it could snap and she could fall.

She's done this before. She would jump off the roofs of her foster parents to ease the pain of their hatred of her.

Jumping eases the pain left by rejection.

As she stands on the edge of the building, she hears her name.

She jumps.

The cord snaps.

_**Author's Note: **__Enjoy the suspense and let me know you want the next part by reviewing! _


	15. A Strong Hand

_**Author's Note: **__Wow! Thanks for all the great feedback! I really appreciate it! I hope this one meets your expectations also. Enjoy!_

She's surprised that she isn't falling to her death.

The cord is being held by a hand.

"Dammit," He curses. "Parker, why the hell do you do such stupid things?!" Eliot groans and re-adjusts himself so he can pull her up.

She's speechless—

And confused.

Why is he helping her after he avoided her for the past two weeks?

He yanks on the cord and Parker slowly glides back towards the roof. Once she's safely on the ground, he embraces her.

She's so confused that she falls into the darkness of her own mind.

He yells her name once more.

_**Author's Note: **__Next drabble, we'll find out why Eliot avoided Parker! Please review! _


	16. Waking Up

_**Author's Note: **__I couldn't fit in the reason why Eliot avoided Parker in this drabble, but I'll try my hardest to get in the next one! Enjoy!_

She wakes up only to shut her eyes due to bright lights.

She groans and rolls over to avoid being blinded. She hears footsteps and reluctantly opens her eyes again.

"Sophie," She mutters.

Sophie looks pissed, but she doesn't say anything and pulls Parker closer to her.

"You could've been killed." She informs her.

"Yeah . . ." Parker replies.

"Thank God Eliot was there."

That stirs something in Parker. She sits up.

"Where is he?"

"Nate finally sent him home."Sophie answers. "He's been by your side for the past two days. He left this."

Sophie hands her a letter.

_**Author's Note: **__Well? Reviews are treasured! _


	17. Note

_**Author's Note: **__I feel really sad after writing this! Sob! Anyways, I hope you enjoy! _

Parker's hands shake as she removes the plain white envelope and pulls out the small note. She can make out his handwriting and feels her heart skip a beat.

_Parker,_

_You're important._

_That's why I need to do this—for you. I'm leaving the team to take care of some things. I wanted to tell you this in person, but Nate sent me home. Please tell the others for me._

_And about that stunt you pulled on the roof, __**don't**__ ever do it again. Promise me. _

_I'm sorry._

_Eliot_

"What is it?" Sophie asks.

"A goodbye."

Parker begins to cry.

_**Author's Note: **__Review, please! How else will I know if you want to read more of these drabbles? _


	18. Gone

_**Author's Note: **__Happy New Years! Please enjoy!_

They let her out of the hospital the next day.

Not that she cares or anything. He's gone and she feels like a part of her is too. Funny, she thinks, how one person could affect me so much.

The team has all lectured her in various ways about her recklessness and everyone has sworn they will cause her bodily harm if she ever tries it again.

Sophie told them about Eliot. Nate sighs and shrugs.

"He told me that some people from his past were here and he wanted to deal with them." He tells everyone.

Another tear falls.

_**Author's Note: **__Please review!_


	19. Worries

_**Author's Note: **__Ok, I've really got to stop spoiling you guys! My other readers for other stories are going to kill me for updating this one so much! Wah! Save me Eliot! Anyway, I couldn't get this out of my head and I even updated with another chapter after this. Enjoy!_

The team is worried about her.

They can see the pain in her eyes and yet she acts like nothing has even happened. She's become like she was when she first joined the team—everything that Sophie taught her has been rejected.

"I'm concerned." Nate admits.

"We have to get Eliot!" Sophie declares passionately. "She won't listen to anyone else but him!"

"Yeah, but the dude said he needed to take care of some things." Hardison informs them. "We can't just drag him away from that."

"But Parker—!" Sophie protests.

"We wait." Nate finally decides.

Sophie's anger consumes her.

_**Author's Note: **__I think it's only natural for Parker to regress due to all the abuse she got while in foster care, don't you? Anyway, review! _


	20. Right Once More

_**Author's Note: **__Enjoy! _

It's been three weeks and there is still no sign of Eliot.

Parker has stopped talking to the team. She barely eats and sleeps. Hardison calls her a "zombie".

"Parker, please." Sophie pleads. "Just talk to me!"

Parker's glassy eyes meet hers and Sophie suddenly feels cold.

"If you keep this up, you're going to make yourself sick!"

Parker looks away and stares out the window.

Sophie sighs angrily and storms out the door.

Parker knew that this day would come. The day when the team turned on her and she would be all alone.

Parker was right once more.

_**Author's Note: **__Review please! Don't you want to know what happens? Have a request for a drabble? Comments? Questions? REVIEW! _


	21. No More Sleeping

_**Author's Note: **__This one was hard to write, but I hope you enjoy it! Also, I take requests for this fanfic. So, here's how requests work for this story. A request can range from a few words like, "flying pigs" to a whole sentence like "Parker, why is there a banana on your head?" or to a situation like, "Parker and Eliot are stuck in traffic." Any of these would work, but also any request has to be below M. I won't do anything above a T so no lemon or anything like that. So, just leave your request in your review and I'll work really hard to write a drabble about it while balancing the storyline at the same time. Enjoy!_

She doesn't sleep anymore.

When she does, it causes too many painful memories to be brought up. All the dreams have one common theme—abandonment. She has been abandonment by everyone she's ever known and she figures that's how it'll always be.

She still is with the team and does jobs with them. She always pulls them off fabulously, but everyone still looks at her with fear in their eyes.

Not that she cares.

She doesn't care about anything anymore. Not even money gives her any satisfaction.

She's alone at the team's base when the door opens.

"Parker?"

It's Eliot.

_**Author's Note: **__Ooh! Drama! Any guesses on what's going to happen? Also, review and request please!_


	22. Request: First Aid

_**Author's Note: **__A cool request from __ninamascota__ which was "Eliot got hurt, what can Parker do?" I really like this one, but unfortunately I couldn't keep it to 100 words exactly, sorry! It's longer, but I like it. I hope you do too! _

He comes into the room, blood seeping through his shirt.

Parker's eyes widen.

"It's nothing," He assures her.

She quickly jumps up, resolve in her eyes.

"Sit." She orders. He's about to protest when she forces him into the chair. "Take your shirt off." Her tone makes it clear that he won't be able to win an argument against her. He sighs and does as he's told. She returns with the first-aid kit.

He waits as she just stares at the kit.

"Do you need help?"

"No!" She yells, but she quickly thrusts the kit to him.

He applies the first-aid explaining to her what to apply where and to what kind of injury while she watches attentively.

She can't help but notice that he is really hot without his shirt on.

She begins to blush.

_**Author's Note: **__Review please! And send in those requests! _


	23. Illusion

_**Author's Note: **__Just to make things clear, the last chapter was NOT part of the main storyline. Request chapters don't have anything to do with the story so if I say it's a request chapter, know that it has nothing to do with the main storyline. Sorry for the confusion! Enjoy this next chapter!_

He slowly shuts the door behind him and comes closer to Parker.

She feels her heart pound and heat surge in her body.

"Parker," He kneels down to level with her at eye-level. "What happened to you?"

She looks away from him. This all a dream. He isn't real. The real Eliot left her! This is just an illusion her heart cooked up to make her feel better.

"Parker—?"

"Eliot!" It's Sophie and Parker snaps her head to see her. "You're back!"

"What's wrong with Parker?" He asks, his eyes never leaving her face.

Sophie says:

"Let's talk outside."

_**Author's Note: **__Review please!_


	24. Sophie's Wrath

_**Author's Note: **__First of three chapters, enjoy!_

Eliot doesn't like the look on Sophie's face.

The look is a mix of pain, anger, and grief and Eliot knows that her wearing it can't be good.

"Sophie—?" He starts.

"I can't believe you." She hisses. "How dare you do this to her!" Her voice is full of hidden anger and Eliot has a feeling that anger will soon be unleashed on him.

"You wouldn't understand." He mutters.

She crosses her arms.

"No, I wouldn't." She's glaring at him. "But, while you were out vacationing I had to watch Parker turn into that empty shell!"

Guilt consumes him.

_**Author's Note: **__Review/Request please!_


	25. Nate Intervenes

_**Author's Note: **__2__nd__ of three chapters, enjoy!_

He makes a move for the door, but Sophie promptly blocks him.

"It'll be a cold day in Hell before I even think about letting you see her."

"Sophie," He pleads.

"Don't you think you've done enough damage?" She questions. "You turned her into that—that zombie!"

"Sophie, let him in." Eliot turns and sees Nate. He has a grim expression on his face and Eliot gets the feeling that things have been really bad with the team since he left. "It might help Parker."

"But—!" Sophie protests.

Eliot places his hand on the doorknob and opens the door.

_**Author's Note: **__Reviews/Requests are greatly appreciated! _


	26. Sorry

_**Author's Note: **__Last of three updates for right now. What do you think of the story? I hope you all are enjoying it!_

Parker sees him come in.

She's sure that this is the real Eliot now after hearing Sophie yell at him. She wonders if he even accomplished his task.

"Parker, I—" He starts.

"You're back." Her voice sounds weak.

"Yeah," He finally replies. "I am."

There's an awkward pause as he takes a seat beside her.

"You left us." She tells him.

"I did." He admits.

"Why?" She interrogates.

"My past caught up to me and I didn't want you to be involved in it."

She notices that he said "you" instead of "the team".

"Eliot—,"

"I'm sorry, Parker."

_**Author's Note: **__Did I mention how much I love/want reviews/requests? _


	27. Stay

_**Author's Note: **__One of my favorite chapters so far! _

They sit there for a moment—both unsure of what to do. Tentatively, she places her head on his shoulder. It feels as good as she imagined.

"Parker," He says quietly. "Everyone's worried."

She doesn't say anything. She knows she caused the others pain, but to her the only way to deal with pain was cut yourself off from the world. It had always been what she had done before.

"You left," She repeats.

"I know," He soothes. He kisses the top of her head as she shuts her eyes for the first time in three weeks.

"Stay,"

He does.

_**Author's Note: **__Next, we'll have Parker and Eliot do some more jobs, go out on a date (maybe), and maybe we'll find out a little more about Eliot's past. Review/Request please!_


	28. Normal

_**Author's Note: **__No, this is not the end. I know it's sounds like an ending, but it's not. I've got tons of storyline to work through! Enjoy!_

Life starts returning to normal—or whatever normal exactly is for the team.

Parker has been acting happier and has been eating and sleeping more often, much to the team's relief. Sophie hasn't forgiven Eliot as easily as the others have. Eliot suspects that it'll take time to earn her trust back.

"Eliot?"

He can't help but smile as he see Parker show up in her workout clothes. He wants to teach her some self-defense just in case she's ever alone.

"Hey,"

She smiles dazzlingly.

"You ready for this?" She asks.

He pulls her to him.

He is always ready.

_**Author's Note: **__Review/Request please!_


	29. Fight

_**Author's Note: **__Sorry for the long delay! I've had so many things to do! Enjoy!_

He has to admit that she fights pretty well for a beginner. She is able to dodge all of his basic moves and some of his more advanced ones. When he does finally manage to get the advantage, she stops struggling.

"You givin' up?" He asks.

She smiles devilishly and in a flash, Eliot pinned on the ground.

"I'm good at this." She remarks, holding him firmly to the ground. She leans in closely to him. "Will you make cookies now?"

He laughs.

"Fine," He sighs, but he is still grinning.

She moves and he pulls her into a kiss.

_**Author's Note: **__Review/Request please!_


	30. She'll Come Around

_**Author's Note: **__Yay! Two chapters in one day! Go me! Enjoy!_

Parker still isn't sure how this whole "relationship" thing works. She's seen people in one, but she doesn't know how she should act. She can't ask Sophie— she hasn't talked to Parker ever since Eliot came back.

"Give her some time." Nate had told her. "She'll come around."

Parker isn't so sure.

She misses Sophie—a lot. She wants Sophie to at least to look at her without anger in her eyes.

"Parker?" It's Eliot. "What's wrong?"

"Sophie," Parker mutters.

Eliot nods knowingly as he sits with her.

"She's mad at me, not you." He clarifies.

Parker still feels bad.

_**Author's Note: **__Anyone got any requests? Feel free to tell me them! _


	31. Internal Conflict

_**Author's Note: **__Ah! I've been so busy that I've haven't been able to update! Sorry! Please enjoy!_

Sophie doesn't approve of this.

He left Parker—nearly destroyed her in the process—and then suddenly comes back and now everything is fine?

Sophie doesn't buy it.

Her friendly feelings for the team's hitter have disappeared and now all that is left is anger. She can't believe that Parker would just welcome him back with open arms!

Sophie frowned and sighed.

She missed Parker. She hadn't talk to her since before Eliot had gotten back.

"Sophie?"

She turns and sees Nate.

"Nate," She sighs.

He places a hand on her shoulder.

"We have a job."

She forces a smile.

_**Author's Note: **__Review/Request please! _


	32. Request: The Kitten Quest

_**Author's Note: **__An awesome request from __**leveragefan**__. The request was "Parker hurt." I hope you enjoy this! Thanks for the request! Please note that Eliot and Parker are not a couple here and that this has nothing to do with the main storyline. Please enjoy! _

Eliot sighs and glances at the clock once more.

He's not sure why he's still here at the office when everyone else has gone home. Well, everyone except Parker who has been gone all day.

He feels anxious and he's not sure why. Sophie did tell him that Parker was off on one of her "fun" robberies—whatever that meant—and that she wouldn't be back until tomorrow.

So, why was he still here? Parker was perfectly capable at doing things on her own and there was no indication that she was hurt or needed help.

The anxiety doesn't go away.

"Dammit," He mutters and jumps up from the table. He's going home since staying here is just making him feel useless.

He places his hand on the doorknob when the door opens. He braces himself for attack, but freezes when he sees who it is.

"Eliot," Parker mumbles. Eliot is about to say something when he sees the blood. Blood seems to be everywhere on Parker's petit frame.

"Parker, what—?"

She forces herself inside and Eliot takes a better look at her. Parker's hair seems matted with blood which indicates a head wound, but by the way Parker was moving it had to be a small head wound. Her arms and legs were covered in small, dried cuts and major bruises. The only other place where there was a ton of blood was the side of her stomach. Her white shirt seemed crimson on that side and Eliot could only pray that she hadn't been shot.

It's the next thing she does that sets him off.

She grabs the remote and begins to watch TV.

He snaps.

"Parker what the hell happened to you!?" He turns off the TV and quickly sits next to her, checking her for more injuries that he couldn't see at a difference.

"I got caught." She replies and Eliot frowns. "In the end though, I still got what I wanted." She pulls out a little white stuffed kitten with hazel eyes. Parker smiles and begins to stroke the little kitty.

"You robbed a toy store?" Eliot asks incredulously. "For a stuffed kitten?"

She nods.

"Nate said I couldn't get a real kitten so I figured I would just have to get a stuffed one!" She begins to coo at the toy while Eliot pinched himself to make sure he wasn't dreaming.

"What toy store did you rob?" He questions, wondering why a toy store would have security guards that could hurt Parker so much.

"Hmm . . ." She thinks for a second and then grins. "I dunno!"

Eliot sighs again and then lifts Parker into his arms.

"Let's go,"

"Where are we going!?" She exclaims. "I wanna stay with my kitten!"

Eliot shakes his head in disbelief.

"I am taking you to a hospital. You obviously got yourself hurt and need medical attention."

"I don't wanna go, I don't wanna go!" She chants. "Eliot, you're so mean!"

A tired smile appears on Eliot's face.

"You're really crazy, you know that?"

She doesn't answer but grabs Eliot's phone.

"Sophie?" She asks. "Um, can you watch my kitten?" A pause. "No, it's fake, but Eliot has to take me to the hospital and I need someone to watch—"

Eliot chuckles as he hears Sophie's voice ringing through Parker's ears.

"It's gonna be a long night," He mutters to himself.

And yet, he wouldn't have it any other way.

_**Author's Note: **__While this is a drabble series—meaning that every chapter is supposed to be 100 words exactly—I have decided to make request chapters as long as I like! Review/Request! _


	33. Request: Mrs Gabbler: Hedda saga Part 1

_**Author's Note: **__A wonderful request from __**crazygurl **__which was "__How about someone from her past or something". I hope this is what you wanted! Enjoy and please note that Parker and Eliot are not a couple here. Also, I added the part about Eliot's motorcycle but I think he'll get one in the show . . . eventually. Enjoy!_

Parker lives in the moment.

It's who she is. She isn't the type of person to dwell in the past or to think about the future. Parker is—for lack of a better word—Parker.

So, when there's a knock on the door at noon, Parker doesn't think as she's getting the door. Well, she is thinking, but the thinking involves her swimming in a pool of money and wondering how she can get that money. When she finally snaps out of her reverie, the sight she sees is shocking.

An older woman—in her mid-40's—stands before Parker. She's wearing a plain white sweater with a dark pair of blue jeans. Her greens eyes light up when they see Parker.

"Parker!" She exclaims and quickly wraps her arms around the shocked Parker. "Oh, sweetie, it's been such a long time!"

Parker does the first thing that comes to mind—she screams.

The woman quickly lets go of her as Parker hears pairs of frantic footsteps behind her.

"Parker!" It's Sophie and Parker quickly clings to her and uses her as a shield.

Eliot looks at Hardison and Nate; both of them seem as mystified as he is as to why Parker is freaking out. His gaze then drifts to Parker and he feels anger course through his veins as he sees the pure terror in her eyes. Whoever this woman was, she didn't bring up fond memories for Parker and Eliot wasn't about to let this woman cause any more trouble.

"Parker, dear?" The woman moves in closer and Parker shudders. Sophie—perplexed—gently tries to soothe her to no avail. "Don't you remember me? I'm Mrs. Gabbler, your old foster mother!"

It all happened so quickly.

Parker completely lost it and charged at Mrs. Gabbler. Eliot was faster than Parker though and quickly encircled his strong arms around her to prevent her from hurting the woman.

"You stay away from me!" Parker screamed. "Stay away!"

Mrs. Gabbler looked hurt.

"Parker, child," She took a step closer and Eliot groaned with effort. Parker was not calming down.

Not good.

"Nate!" Eliot yelled.

Nate nodded.

"Mrs. Gabbler," He said calmly. "Can we speak in the other room while Parker calms herself?" Mrs. Gabbler nodded and Nate led her deeper into the team's headquarters. Hardison followed after Nate as did Sophie, albeit reluctantly.

When he was sure she wasn't going to go all berserk on him again, Eliot released Parker, but he could still see the unadulterated fury in her eyes.

"Parker," Eliot addressed. "What the hell was that stunt you just tried to pull!? You coulda gotten locked up for assault—"

Parker ignored him and grabbed the keys to his motorcycle and ran out the door.

Eliot chuckled dryly. There was definitely no way in hell that Parker was getting on his baby!

She was fast, but Eliot had been trained to be faster. He catches up to her and grabs her wrist.

"Eliot!" She shouts. "Let me go!"

"No," He replies calmly.

Parker dropped the keys and began to cry and then embraced Eliot. Confused, Eliot returned the hug.

He may not know who this Mrs. Gabbler was and he may never know, but right now Parker needed him.

And that was all he needed to know.

_**Author's Note: **__Review/Request please! _


	34. Request: Sugar High

_**Author's Note: **__A fun request from __**MusicEstVita **__which was "Parker's favorite food." I hope you all enjoy this chapter and note that Eliot and Parker aren't a couple here. Enjoy!_

If there's anything anyone in the Leverage Team knows it's not to bring cookies to work.

Ever.

However, this morning, Hardison was dying from a lack of sugar. The Team had been camped out in their office for the past two days due to Nate's fear that their houses were being watched by the company that they were trying to bring down.

Normally, this wouldn't bother Hardison, but his Nana had recently made him some of her homemade cookies. He loved those cookies and that was why he had brought them to work.

Big mistake.

"Hardison."

He froze.

"Crap," He cursed.

He turned around and saw Parker and he knew he was in for it. Parker smiled brightly as she saw that he was indeed holding her favorite food—cookies. She took a step closer, eager to get her prize when Hardison jumped back.

"What?" Parker snapped, getting irritated that she wasn't enjoying some cookies right now.

"You can't have any." He answered.

Parker's eyes filled with fury.

"What?" She questioned. Her hands clenched at her sides into fists.

Hardison had learned before that he couldn't win a fight against Parker. So, he came up with a plan.

"Eliot!" Hardison called. "Eliot, dude! Help!" He felt foolish calling for back-up on a girl that had never really had any formal fighting training, but he decided that if he could keep his cookies it would be worth it.

"What?" Eliot growled, rubbing his eyes. It was 5:00 am and he really needed his sleep if he was going to be in top fighting form.

"It's Parker." Hardison replied. Eliot's eyes opened immediately and he quickly knew what was going on.

"Parker?" Eliot asked soothingly, coming in-between her and Hardison. "Why don't you go back to bed?"

She pointed to the bag of cookies.

"I want them." She said simply.

"You can't have them!" Hardison yelled and Eliot glared at him. The last thing Hardison wanted to do was provoke Parker more.

"Move, Eliot." Parker growled and Eliot sighed as he realized that he wasn't going to go back to bed.

"Parker, don't do this." Eliot begged. "It's early."

Her expression showed no sign of changing and Eliot rolled up his sleeves. There was no avoiding it. Eliot turned to Hardison.

"Give her the cookies."

"What?!" Exclaimed Hardison. "You have to be—!"

Eliot began to crack his knuckles and Hardison immediately shut up. He thrust the bag into Parker's hands and quickly left the room.

"Happy now?" Eliot asked.

Parker beamed as she put one cookie in her mouth. She looked so beautiful when she was like this. She seemed normal and happy and—Eliot stopped himself. Since when did he start thinking Parker was beautiful? He obviously wasn't thinking clearly. He needed to go back to sleep.

"Eliot," Parker placed a cookie in his hand. "Thanks!"

And with that she bounded out of the room humming some unknown tune. Eliot sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

That girl was crazy.

And the scarier part was that he liked that.

_**Author's Note: **__Thanks for all the wonderful reviews/requests! Keep them coming! _


	35. Request: Alias

_**Author's Note: **__A great request from **Audrey Hale **__**Petrelli **__which was "__Eliot and Parker watch a show or movie with either Beth or Christian in it" I hope you enjoy this! And yes, Eliot and Parker are a couple in this!_

It's a rare night in the office for Parker and Eliot.

For once, they are alone and able to spend some time together as a couple. However, they are also unable to go out since Hardison locked them inside. Apparently, the security system panicked and locked all the exits of the office and so now Eliot and Parker are watching TV while the others are outside the office trying to get them out.

Parker sighs and keeps flipping the channels unsatisfied with whatever program is on. She finally pauses when she sees the _Without a Trace_ opening. Eliot puts his arm around her shoulders and pulls her so she is lying on his shoulder.

They watch and wait.

The missing woman appears and Eliot gasps.

"What?" Parker questions.

He looks at the woman on the TV. She looks exactly like Parker except her hair is brown, but still . . . that woman has to be Parker. The resemblance is uncanny.

"It's you!" He exclaims.

She looks at the woman and then looks at Eliot strangely.

"No, it's not."

"Yes, it is." He replies.

"No," She growls. "It's not." She points to the screen. "See, her name is Beth Riesgraf. My name is Parker."

Eliot shakes his head in disbelief.

"Like you haven't used an alias before." He remarks. Parker rolls her eyes and sighs.

"I can't act." She informs him.

He chuckles remembering the time she stabbed that guy that was flirting with her with a fork. She did have a point.

It's just then that the door opens and Parker and Eliot can hear cheers as the rest of the team comes in.

"It's about time!" Eliot remarks.

"Sorry, dude." Hardison replies. "But, let's just say I make such a damn good security system that even I had a hard time breaking into it."

Parker stands up.

"Well, I'm going." She quickly leaves the room, a smile threatening to consume her.

See, the thing was, that was her on that show. She had wanted to steal a set piece from that show and ended up starring in an episode. Needless to say, she got the set piece.

And people were still calling Beth Riesgraf to see if she wanted to star in more TV shows.

_**Author's Note: **__Review/Request please!_


	36. The Next Job

_**Author's Note: **__Wow! I have so many requests! Thank you all! I promise to get to them ASAP, but I have to go on with the main plot too. Enjoy!_

For the first time since Eliot has been back, they're all sitting together.

It's their first job in a long time and it sounds simple enough—bring down a corporation that has stolen millions of dollars from their employees.

Sounds easy enough, right?

Then why is Parker feeling so . . . out of it? As much as she loves jumping off buildings, without Sophie's support, she feels alone. She steals a glance at her friend only to meet an icy glare.

Parker stops looking immediately.

Sophie is no longer her friend.

And Parker doesn't know how to fix this.

_**Author's Note: **__Did you like? Let me know! Review/Request please! _


	37. Hope

_**Author's Note: **__More plot! And next chapter will be more requests!_

Nate can feel the tension in the air.

Hell, anyone could!

He took this simple job to see if his team can pull together for the greater good or if it's too late. Nate knows that he needs to fix the problems in his team, but he's unsure of how to do it. He knows that Sophie doesn't trust Eliot due to what he did to Parker, but he also knows that Parker and Eliot need Sophie's approval.

He rubs his temples in frustration.

The whole thing is making his head hurt.

He hopes that this job will fix them.

_**Author's Note: **__Thanks go out to my loyal readers! Review/Request please! _


	38. Request: And the Way You Look Tonight

_**Author's Note: **__A really lovely request from wish you knew 222, which was "__How about one where Eliot is jealous. The team goes out and some guy takes an interest in Parker." I hope you like this one! I had a lot of fun writing it and obviously, this is set before they become a couple. The song used for the dance is "The River Flows in You" by Yiruma. It's a gorgeous song and it fits this chapter perfectly. Please enjoy!_

It's a rare night for the team.

Tonight, is a night to celebrate. A night where everyone can let their worries leave them and just have fun.

Tonight is a huge night.

Eliot is not looking forward to it. Nate has insisted that they go to this party formally and that means Eliot has to wear a suit. He hates suits. He feels constricted in a suit. You can't punch a guy in a suit.

And yet, here he is.

Waiting with Hardison and Nate for Sophie and Parker to emerge from the bathroom where they have been for the past hour.

"Nate, man," Hardison groans. "Can we go yet?" He checks his watch. "By the time those two are done, the whole party's gonna be over."

"Give them a few more minutes." Nate replies, but Eliot can tell that he too is becoming restless.

Ten minutes pass until finally, they hear the door open and Sophie excitedly rushes out. Nate stands to greet her, but Sophie motions for him to sit down. Eliot has to say that she looks even more beautiful than usual. She's wearing a strapless red gown with white jewels surrounding her body right under her chest. Elegant white flowers sweep down the right side of the gown and connect to an opening where the silky red material pulls up, revealing white lace bedecked with gold in it. Her hair has been curled and then placed into a bun and she's wearing a long diamond pendant that Nate gave her for her birthday with matching earrings. Eliot can tell that Nate is blown away by her appearance and he smirks at that. He finds it funny that a guy could become so flustered at the sight of a pretty girl. Sophie really had Nate tied around her pinky.

"May I present the lovely Parker?" She begins to clap, but Eliot hears Parker call out:

"I'm not coming!"

Sophie sighs.

"What do you mean?" Sophie asks.

"I look ridiculous!" Eliot chuckles. "Why can't I wear sweat pants?"

"Because I didn't just spend over an hour helping you put on that dress just so you could go to this party is sweats!"

He could hear Parker sigh and then he heard her slowly walk down the hall. She reluctantly appeared before all of them and as soon as Eliot laid eyes on her, he felt like the wind had been knocked out of him.

"I look funny," She mumbles, looking at the ground and Eliot wanted to protest. She looked like a—angel was the only word he come up with. She was wearing a strapless turquoise blue gown with jewels embedded in the corset. Past the corset, the shiny material was pulled up with crystals holding it into place. The pulled up part reveled a silky blue underneath. Her hair was down but had been curled as well and it appeared to glow in the light. She was wearing a diamond chocker and matching bracelet. Eliot thought she even outshone Sophie when it came to her beauty.

He realized with a start that he was checking Parker out and for some reason, that didn't sound odd to him. In fact, he felt like he wanted to be with Parker for the rest of the night—her and her alone.

He quickly then felt startled at the obvious change in himself.

"You look gorgeous, Parker." Nate informs her, taking Sophie by the hand. "And we all need to go or we'll miss the party all together."

Sophie nods eagerly and Nate escorts her outside. Hardison follows behind them. Eliot is stunned by the beauty that is front of him and he doesn't know what to say or do. Parker looks at him for a moment and Eliot feels a spark in him, urging him to kiss Parker.

Kiss Parker?

That thought—strange as it may be—sounds wonderful. He wants to kiss her, to hold her, comfort her, but most of all be with her. He can't believe that a simple dress could inspire all these feelings in him. It was like Parker had him under some spell, maybe she did, but Eliot didn't care.

"Ready to go?" Eliot asks, but his tone of voice is full of shock and admiration. He doesn't deserve to be talking to this angel on Earth.

"Y-yeah," She answers and he offers a hand. She stares at it for a few seconds and then takes it as he escorts her to the car. The whole way to the party, he stares at her, trying to memorize every detail of her. He wants to forever remember the way she looks tonight. He wants it to be engrained into his memory, eternally.

Too soon the car came to a stop and they all got out.

"Well," Nate began as they all stood before him. "This your night, do with it as you will because tomorrow we are working on a huge job that'll take who knows how long."

"So, party!" Sophie exclaims as she pulled Nate into the crowded hotel ballroom. After a few seconds, Eliot and Parker were the only ones left.

"So . . ." She mumbles. "Should we go in?" Her gaze met his again and his heart skipped a beat. She had to be the most beautiful thing on this Earth.

"Yes," He answers and he begins to lead the way.

The ballroom is packed, not that he notices. His eyes refuse to look at anything but Parker and he doesn't even care about what that might mean in the long run. All that matters right now is her. She is his world right now. The candles and jewels that adorn the regal ballroom look pathetic compared to her.

"Oh, she doth teach the torches to burn so bright," He quotes, watching her in the candlelight. _Romeo and Juliet_ had been his mother's favorite play and as a child he had never understood it. Who falls in love with a girl in one night? It had to be impossible and yet, Eliot knew that he done just that.

He was in love with Parker.

He breaks out of his silent reverie to find that another man has also taken an interest in Parker. He's talking to her and Eliot can tell that this man wants Parker for himself. A strange anger boils within himself. He clenches his fists by his side and thinks about punching this stranger out.

His body moves before his mind can think.

"And as I was saying—"

"Parker," He greets, pulling her close to him. "There you are." He smiles evilly at the guy who even dared to consider flirting with his girl.

"Eliot?" She questions. He says nothing, only keeps his grip on Parker. Soon enough, the guy is gone and Eliot is still holding Parker.

"What were you doing?" He questioned.

"I believe he was . . ." She thought for a second, trying to think of Sophie's word. "Flirting with me and then you showed up and now he's gone." She looks up at him and he loves the way her eyes sparkle in the light. "What are you doing?"

A song begins with a slow, beautiful medley. On the dance floor, various couples begin to dance and Eliot can see Nate and Sophie dancing, both of them as happy as can be.

He bows and asks:

"May I have this dance?"

Parker, speechless, nods.

He whisks her away to the dance floor. The two of them sway side to side as the music seems to eliminate everyone and just leaves them, swaying on the ballroom dance floor.

He admits to himself that he was jealous of that guy. He feels anger boil within him just thinking about any guy getting within five feet of Parker. That being said, he also realizes his feelings for her are more than just friendship.

He is in love with Parker.

She places her head down on his shoulder and he feels happiness spread within himself. To think that her touch could cause so much change in him astonishes him. But, he also doesn't care anymore. He doesn't care about the "why" anymore. All he cares about is the girl that is in front of him. She is what he fights for—she and she alone.

The sweet melody plays on.

He won't tell her now; she isn't ready. But one day, when the time is right, he will tell her about his feelings for her. He'll tell her about how he fell in love with her that one magical night when they went to this party. He'll tell her about the jealousy he felt when he saw that guy flirting with her. But most of all, he'll tell her about the feeling he's having right now dancing with her. He'll tell her about the music that's playing and how he thinks it suits her.

And after all that is done, he'll tell her that he thanks Sophie everyday for helping her into the dress that made him realize his feelings for her.

_**Author's Note: **__Review/Request please! _


	39. Request: Trusting Mrs Gabbler: Part 2

_**Author's Note: **__Well, this is a surprise. I'd never thought I'd actually do a sequel to a request chapter, but thanks to the kind words of __**scrawn **__and __**leveragefan **__I present the second installment of Mrs. Gabbler! Enjoy! _

Nate frowns as he listens to Mrs. Gabbler's story.

It's not that he doesn't trust this nice lady before him, but he's never seen Parker react that way towards anyone before and frankly, it has him worried. Why would Parker try to hurt this woman that raised her? What happened between them?

He suppresses a sigh.

He hates unanswered questions.

"So, Mrs. Gabbler, you came because . . .?" Sophie prompts.

"Parker ran away when she was 15." The woman pushes some of her brown hair out of her face. "Ever since then, I've wanted to see her again." She met Nate's gaze. "You see, I couldn't have children and Parker was like a daughter to me."

"Why did Parker act that way the way she did when she saw you?" Nate questions. He doesn't know what to make of this woman, but he's starting to think that things are fishy.

"I honestly have no idea." She replies. "Look, Mr. Ford, I love Parker and I just wanted to see her."

There's a knock on the door and then Eliot walks in. Sophie quickly jumps up and Nate knows that something must be wrong with Parker. Sophie always knows when things are wrong with Parker and by the look in Eliot's eyes, it must be bad.

"Go, Sophie." Nate tells her and Sophie gratefully nods her head as she runs out the door. Eliot shuts the door and takes her spot. Nate can feel the fury coming off of him as he looks at the moment before him. Something must be completely wrong with Parker if Eliot is acting this protective.

"Excuse me, Mr. Ford," Mrs. Gabbler starts. "But, I flew all the way out here for a reason and that was to see Parker." Nate stands up and helps Mrs. Gabbler from her seat.

"I'm afraid that Parker isn't feeling up to it today, but I'll be sure to—"

"I'm dying, Mr. Ford,"

Shocked silence.

"Excuse me?" Nate questions.

"I have cancer and I intend to see my daughter before I die regardless of what she thinks about it or not." Mrs. Gabbler has her hands on her hips and Nate, for once, doesn't know what to say or do. He looks to Eliot for support, but he can still tell that the hitter doesn't care what this woman has, he won't let her get near Parker.

"Mrs. Gabbler," Nate says opening the door. "Please come back tomorrow and we'll sort out what to do."

The woman nods and exits the room. As soon as she is out of his line of sight, Nate curses. What the hell was going on here?

"Didn't see that one coming," Eliot remarks. "But, I don't trust her."

"Is that your gut feeling or do you not trust her because of the way Parker reacted when she saw her?"

Eliot doesn't answer and Nate knows that he's cornered.

"She was crying, Nate." Eliot admits. "Parker never cries."

The door opens and Parker walks in with Sophie behind her. He can see her eyes are red and puffy from crying.

"Is she gone?" Parker questions.

"Yes," Nate answers and the tension visibly leaves her features. He hesitates about whether to tell her the rest, but he decides that it's best if he tell her now. "But Parker, she's dying."

Parker's eyes widen and then she slowly blinks.

"Parker?" Eliot asks, taking a step closer to her.

"Dying?" She repeats.

Eliot nods and Parker's eyes glass over.

"Oh,"

And with that, Parker collapses.

_**Author's Note: **__Does anyone want Mrs. Gabbler part 3? Review/Request! _


	40. Assignments

_**Author's Note: **__More main storyline! And can I just say that I was blown away by the response from the last chapter? Wow! Part 3 will be coming ASAP! Enjoy! _

They know their assignments.

Sure, Nate thinks, they know them but will they stick to them?

After a very awkward meeting, Nate had given everyone their job and had purposely put some people together to see if they could overcome their hurt feelings.

Parker and Sophie were going to break into the office to see if they could get anything off his laptop.

Eliot would be with them to dispatch any guards that came their way.

Nate and Hardison would remain here to watch.

"I hope this works," Hardison mumbles.

Nate chuckles dryly.

"What's the worst thing that could happen?"

_**Author's Note: **__As always, review/request please! Also, I'm looking for a new title for this series. I don't really like Stories, but I can't come up with anything better. Any suggestions? _


	41. Request: Clubbing

_**Author's Note: **__Amazing request from __**Booth-Bones 4life**__ which was "Eliot and Parker go to a club or something." I hope you like it! Also, I'm looking for a new title for this series. Suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Thanks! _

They're going out tonight.

Granted, it's for a job, but it still counts as going out.

Eliot's glad. As much as he loves his work, it's good to get out and breathe for awhile. The job is simple too. Go to _Drabbles_, the local club, and keep an eye on the seedy bank teller that they're going to bring down.

"Eliot?"

And there's the problem with his simple plan.

Parker walks into his room and twirls with her hair nervously. She's wearing a tight fitting red dress. Eliot feels a wave of heat enter his body and his brain screams at him to get it under control. This was Parker he was thinking about. She was his partner for the job. He needed to stay focus and after this whole thing was over, take a cold shower.

"Yes, Parker?" He asks gruffly, his gaze quickly darting to the wall.

"Do I really have to wear this?" She moved the fabric uncertainly. "I look funny."

He sighs for the fifth time in the past ten minutes.

"Parker," He says in a tone that conveys a sense of frustration to Parker. She bites her lower lip, unsure of what to do. "Let's go."

He grabs her wrist and drags her out the door. Nate had set them up in a hotel that was right across the street from the club. He flashes the fake I.D. that Hardison made to the guy at the door.

"Welcome back, Mr. Matthews."

Eliot is amazed at the things Hardison could do.

They both into the club and spot their target. The music is blaring, the lights are flashing, and Parker looks completely out of place.

Eliot frowns.

People out of place in any situation are the first to be spotted and they don't need any attention on them.

"Eliot, I—" He pulls her close to him and begins to twirl her around.

"Let go," He orders, but Parker swears that his eyes are smiling at her. He begins to twirl her around again and she responds. She closes her eyes and listens to the music around her. She lets it wash out all her fears, her worries, her doubts and when she opens her eyes, she smiles.

Eliot loves that smile.

It's a smile that he has only seen once before when Parker got her hands on a lot of money and he means _a lot_.

They dance and for awhile they forget about their job and are just two normal people having a good time at a club.

Later, they realize that their guy has vanished. Panicked, they split up to go look for him.

As she watches him run away, Parker thinks that she likes clubs.

Eliot thinks the same thing.

_**Author's Note: **__Review/Request please! _


	42. Request: In the Kitchen

_**Author's Note: **__A fun request from __**CalmintheChaos **__which was "__Eliot and Parker as a couple, Eliot cooks for Parker and won't let her help, you fill in the reason." I hope you like this one! Enjoy!_

Eliot loves to cook, but not necessarily for the reason you might think. True, he loves good food, but cooking is a release for him. It's a chance for him to take all that angry energy and take it out on the innocent food on his cutting board and then eat something yummy at the end.

His mom had been the one who got him into cooking. Whenever he was upset or had a rough day, she would be in the kitchen distracting him by teaching him to be a proper chef. While he resisted at first, he later began to feel attached to cooking. He remembered that whenever he finished a dish his mom would look at it for a long time before trying it. Then, she would quickly take a bite and smile.

"I don't know how you do it, Eliot," She would murmur. "But, it's amazing."

He smiles, reliving the memory.

He's completely changed from the guy he was an hour ago. An hour ago, he was pissed off. He had been slow in his reaction to getting to the team and because of that, Nate had a concussion. A concussion that was all Eliot's fault. If only he had been there a little bit sooner!

There's a quick knock at the door.

"Come in!" He shouts, though he really doesn't want company right now.

"Hey,"

He looks up and sees Parker. She has a strange glint in her eyes and Eliot is just about to ask what's wrong when she embraces him, not caring about the fact that he has a very long and sharp knife in his hand.

"Woah, Parker!" He exclaims, pushing her back. He then puts the knife down before she does something else reckless. "What's with the hugging?"

He doesn't mind it, but she's freaking him out. She's never spontaneously hugged him before. When they went out on dates, yeah, but never anytime else.

"Sophie said you were upset and she said that you needed a huge so I gave you one." She says it like he should've known all along. She pulls up a seat and sits down at the counter, watching him chop furiously.

"What?"

She smiles deviously and he can't help but smile too. He loves that smile. It lights up her face and makes you feel like you can walk on air, but it also means she's planning something and knowing Parker . . . well, let's just say that can be a bad thing.

"Can I help?"

"No," He replies quickly and she pouts.

"Why not?!"

He suppresses a chuckle and focuses on chopping the carrots in front of him. He's not sure what he's making, but he's already chopped lettuce, onions, and celery. He supposes he should think about what he's making, but he still needs to get his frustration out.

"I need to just let my anger out." He tells her.

She tilts her head in confusion.

"So, you're angry at the carrots?"

He laughs and it feels good. He can feel the tension leaving him. That's good.

"No, Parker." He answers her, pushing the chopped carrots aside. He reaches for the next thing, basil, and begins to chop. "I'm mad at me and chopping things makes me feel better." He looks up and sees that she still doesn't understand, but then again, this is Parker he was talking too. She didn't understand half of the things normal people did.

"Can I stay then and watch?" Her voice sounds so hopeful that he can't resist her. He nods his head and she smiles gleefully. She then babbles to him for the next hour, handing Eliot various things to chop. When he's finally finished, he leans over and kisses her. It startles her for a second, but she relaxes and begins to kiss him back. When he pulls back, she's grinning. "What was that for?"

"For being there." He replies.

They kiss once more.

_**Author's Note: **__Titles anyone? Anyone have any suggestions for titles? Review/Request please! _


	43. Listening

_**Author's Note: **__Plot's heating up again! And thanks to __**writer23 **__for the new title! More requests are coming up soon along with Mrs. Gabbler part 3! Enjoy!_

The first stage commences and Nate holds his breath.

He's worried about what will or will not happen. Everything is riding on this job—the people that needed them, his passion, their family—everything that Nate has ever loved since his son died is in danger of ending.

"Sophie?" Nate asks into the communicator. "Are you in yet?"

There's no answer.

"Parker?"

Still nothing.

Nate takes a deep breath in and tries with his last resort.

"Eliot, do you read me?"

Nate only hears static. His mind is made up.

"Hardison, let's move."

They leave with a feeling of dread.

_**Author's Note: **__Reviews/Requests are always appreciated! _


	44. Request: Never Forget

_**Author's Note: **__Another fun request from __**Music Est Vita**__, which was "Parker takes something that belongs to Eliot." This was one was fun to write for me and a bit sad. They're not a couple here, it's more of Parker crushing on him, but not realizing it. Enjoy!_

She's done something wrong.

Something very, very wrong.

She knows this and yet, she doesn't care. She's a thief before anything else—that's something that everyone should come to realize about her. Still, she feels a weird sense of guilt in her body. She pushes that aside and looks at her prize.

It's a shirt.

A plain, white man's shirt.

And yet, it brings her comfort. She brings it closer to her as she huddles on the ground with it. It smells like him and that's a relief for her. She had to take it from him. She knew if he left and she didn't have anything of his, she would forget. First, it would be little things like his smell or the way he looked when he was angry. Then, it would progress to bigger things like the way his voice sounded or they way he acted.

She refused to forget him.

Hence, the shirt.

As she lay on the ground, holding the shirt as close to her as possible, she smiled.

"I won't forget."

And she didn't.

_**Author's Note: **__Next chapter, Mrs. Gabbler returns! But is this a good thing or a bad thing? Review/Request please! _


	45. Request: Robber: Hedda saga Part 3

_**Author's Note: **__Again, I'd never thought this story would go on, but will all the nice comments I couldn't help it! Enjoy!_

They gently lay her down on the couch and Sophie fetches a blanket.

"Must've been the shock," Nate comments. Sophie returns and places the blanket over Parker's sleeping form. She then pushes some hair out of her face like a mother would do to a child. Nate sighs and motions for the team to come into his office.

"So . . ." Sophie starts, trying to break the uncomfortable silence that they have going on.

"Who is this woman?" Eliot asks, trying to keep his anger in check. There's something about this whole situation that just seems off. He can't place it, but something is wrong. He turns to look at Hardison who is furiously typing away on the computer.

"Got anything?" Nate asks.

"Mrs. Hedda Gabbler." Hardison started. "Husband died after Parker ran away and she's been using his money to pay for chemotherapy and private eyes." He looks up from the screen. "Probably to find Parker."

"Anything suspicious?" Eliot asks, but Hardison shakes his head no.

"She looks like a normal woman to me." Hardison remarks.

"Then, what was with Parker's reaction?" Sophie questions.

"Oh, wait!" Hardison exclaims as he punches more keys into the computer. "Arrested for armed bank robbery the same time Parker came to stay with her. She was charged with a few more robberies, but she was deemed not guilty. Then, she's been quiet ever since Parker left."

Nate reclines back in his chair and thinks.

"She used Parker to rob banks." He says frankly. "When she got caught, Parker was punished by her. Parker never got caught after that and ran away."

"So what are you saying?" Eliot questions angrily. "That this woman abused Parker?" His fist clenches without him noticing as anger spreads within his body. How dare she?! Who the hell did she think she was?! She was so dead when Eliot got his hands on her!

"I'm saying it's possible," Nate says calmly. "It would explain a lot of things. She must be back to get more money and she wants Parker to help her."

There's a loud slam and everyone jumps.

"Parker!" Sophie exclaims running out the door. There's a scream and the rest of the team runs out. Parker is gone and the blanket is the only thing that remains. Sophie points to the gun case and Eliot can tell that one is missing.

"Damn!" He curses as he grabs his coat.

"Eliot, wait!" Sophie yells, but he's already out the door. Parker was going to try and kill this woman and he needed to stop her. He had to stop her! Then, he would deal with this Mrs. Gabbler himself.

Because anyone that messed with his girl never got away with it.

_**Author's Note: **__Part 4, anyone?_


	46. Drive

_**Author's Note: **__More plot and yes, there'll be a part 4 to Mrs. Gabbler after I get through some more of my requests. Enjoy!_

Nate is practically sprinting to the car and Hardison is having a hard time keeping up.

"Yo, Nate, what's your rush?!" The resident computer geek asks breathlessly.

"They're not answering," He replies grimly getting into the car. "That can't be good."

Hardison nods and they both feel precious time ticking away as they drive to the rest of the team's last location. Hardison says a silent prayer for all three of them and swears revenge on anyone who even thinks about hurting them.

Minutes tick by and Nate visibly tenses. He's in danger of losing his family.

"Please," He mumbles.

_**Author's Note: **__Reviews/Requests are always welcome!_


	47. Request: I'll Be There For You

_**Author's Note: **__A fun request from __**Anonymously-Insane**__, which was __"In most of the drabbles, Eliot has been the one helping/comforting Parker. What happens when it's Parker's turn to be the shoulder to cry on?" I hope you like it! Enjoy!_

There's something wrong.

Parker may not be the one most experience with feelings, but even an idiot could figure out that something is wrong. The air in Eliot's apartment was weighing down on the young thief's shoulders. As she gently climbs into the kitchen through an open window, she notices that it's insanely quiet and dark in the apartment.

She knows that something is definitely off.

Her mind instantly shifts into thief mode as she scans the apartment for any signs of foul play. Her feet silently hit the floor of the apartment like a cat. She looks around the kitchen and then sees the flickering of a TV in the other room. Parker decides to investigate.

"_Oh, honey, Eliot!" _Parker sees a woman on the TV pointing to a young boy riding a bike. The woman is smiling proudly and the child—Eliot?—is grinning at the camera. _"That's my boy! My little Eliot!"_

Parker is pretty sure that this is Eliot's mother on the TV and she wonders why Eliot is watching it and where he is. She hears the footsteps too late and she is about to flip the person that's holding her shoulder when she realizes that it's Eliot.

"Parker?" His voice is raw and emotionless. It's scaring her. He looks at her, waiting for to explain why she's there, but she doesn't say anything. Surprisingly, Eliot sits on the couch and watches the videos with devastation in his eyes.

"_Jim, look at him go!" _The child pedals faster and the woman smiles and cheers. Parker sits down next to him.

"Eliot—?" She wants to ask him what's wrong and why he's feeling like this, but she's scared. He's always been the strong one on the team, their protector. He comforted them when they were down and Parker isn't sure if she can be comforting like him.

But she can try.

"She's dead." He says tiredly. She's about to ask who when he points to the woman on the screen.

"Your mom?" The thief asks. He nods and Parker bites her lower lip. She's not comforting, it's not in her DNA, but he needs her. He needs her to be his shoulder to cry on. So, the least she could do is try to pay back all the times he's helped her. She wraps her arms around him and then whispers, "Cry."

He does. Parker holds him in her arms and promises to help him through this. No matter how long or how hard it will be, she'll be there.

That's a promise.

As she looks at the TV, she thinks that she can see the woman actually in front of her. She has a heavenly glow around her and when she smiles at Parker, the room seems to light up. She mouths the words "thank you" and then fades away.

Parker holds Eliot closer to her.

_**Author's Note: **__Review/Request please!_


	48. Request: Lalala

_**Author's Note: **__A cool request from__**onepiecefreec**__, which was "Eliot singing." Due to this request, I actually listened to some of Christian's music and I think he has a great voice! Anyway, Eliot and Parker are not a couple here. Eliot hasn't even realized his feelings for her yet. Enjoy!_

He sings when she's near.

That's something that Sophie has noticed recently. Whenever Parker is around, Eliot always seems to be humming a tune or even occasionally singing softly to himself. Sophie's not sure what exactly he's singing, but still, singing is singing. Surprisingly, he has a good voice. And the strange thing is, Sophie isn't worried by this strange new development as the others are. He's singing because he's happy and it's as simple as that.

He walks past her, humming again.

"Parker's back?" She asks casually, though she knows the answer.

"Yeah," He replies gruffly and then goes back to his tune.

Sophie just grins.

_**Author's Note: **__Reviews and Requests are always greatly appreciated! _


	49. No One's Home

_**Author's Note: **__Yay for plot! _

They arrive at the last known location of the team and find nothing.

Nate feels his air supply choke off. How can this be happening? He knew things could go wrong, but to lose all three of them was too much for him to bear.

"Nate!" Haridson's frantic voice echoes the emptiness of the building. "Over here!" Nate's legs carry him over to where Hardison is holding up a bruised and bloodied Sophie. Nate quickly scoops his girlfriend into his arms and cradles her, hoping to warm up her fridgid body.

"They are . . . gone,"

She then collapses.

_**Author's Note: **__As always, review and request please! _


	50. Blame

_**Author's Note: **__Huge story arc coming up!_

Sophie doesn't remember all of it—her mind is too muddled—and what she does remember doesn't help the team out very much.

She remembers breaking in with Parker. The thief seemed happy to work again and even smiled that Sophie—something that almost gave the experienced actress chills. Still, it felt good working to be working together and Sophie even felt her grudge against Eliot slip away. She was about to apologize when Parker froze suddenly.

The only thing Sophie can remember after that was pain.

Parker and Eliot could be dead right now.

Sophie blames herself for this.

_**Author's Note: **__Review/Request please!_


	51. Request: Rampage

_**Author's Note: **__A really fun request from __**wishyouknew222**__, which was "__Eliot is enraged. The team is too scared to go near him to try to calm him down. Except Parker." I had a lot of fun with this one because I could really see this happening on the show. That is, once they wake up and realize that Eliot and Parker are awesome together! Anyways, I wrote a long one-shot called "Parker and the Disney Movies" which is pretty self-explanatory. It's Parker/Eliot of course. Check it out please! And without any further ado, enjoy! _

_Bang!_

Parker freezes in the hallway. Her shopping bag—full of stolen goods that she just had to have—gently slides to the floor as Parker tries to figure out where that noise came from. She had decided to swing by the office to let Nate know that she had "borrowed" his red Ferrari and that it was back now, but she wondered what could be going on if that noise had come from the place that sort of felt like home to her.

_Crash!_

She's convinced now that the noise is coming from the office and she can't help but run down the hall and burst through the door. Parker sees nothing in the main lobby area save for pieces of broken glass on the floor. The experienced thief steps over them and moves further into the lobby and towards the long hall.

"Eliot, please!" It's Sophie's strangled voice and Parker feels hair stand up on the back of her neck. She's never heard Sophie use that tone and it's scaring her. What was going on?

"Sophie, stay back!" Nate orders as Parker hears glass break. "Eliot, stop!"

More glass breaks and Parker drops her bag as she hurries to where all the commotion is coming from. She breathlessly enters the room and spots Eliot. He is furious, even Parker could tell that and she wishes that she could help him.

"What happened?" She asks quietly as she steps towards him, not caring for her own safety. It's Sophie's strong arm that pulls her back.

"He got a phone call about his Dad," Sophie informs her. "He's been stabbed by one of the people that we got."

Parker nods and slides out of Sophie's grasp. Nate and Sophie's voice fades away to a low murmur as she walks towards Eliot. She can tell he's in pain and she wants nothing more than to make it go away. He meets her gaze and shouts something at her, but she can't hear. She's only focused on him.

Glass shatters and Parker feels wet on her cheek as she realizes that a piece of the glass has cut her face; she keeps moving. He's saying something, but the thief can't hear him. Funny, she thinks, that the only thing I can see is him.

She embraces him and he's shocked. Then, he cries.

She holds him and lets him sob.

"It's ok."

And he begins to feel for the first time that it might be.

_**Author's Note: **__Review/Request please! _


	52. Request: You're Safe

_**Author's Note: **__A slightly modified request from **TV Love!** I hope this will be somewhat what you wanted! Enjoy!_

He doesn't like the way that guy is looking at her.

The man is staring at Parker's figure and Eliot figures he's imagining the thief naked and Eliot doesn't like this idea. The man is Richard Pryce, a mayoral candidate that the team has found out that he has embezzling money from the local hospital. The guy's a biggest jerk as they come and—Eliot glances at Parker again to see that Parker is now talking to him and Eliot feels his hand curl tightly around the wine glass. He doesn't like this situation, he doesn't like it one bit.

But Parker is playing her part as a ditzy blonde model and he has to play his as a waiter. He's got to stop getting picked to play the waiter!

"Ah, mister mayor, right?" Parker smiles dumbly right on cue and the mayoral candidate smiles. Damn him . . .

"No, not yet sweetheart, but soon," Eliot grips the glass harder. He pulls Parker closer to him and she smiles again. After this, he's going to have a long talk with Parker about what it means to be distant from the target.

Richard takes her away to back room and Eliot tenses up. He doesn't like the feeling he's getting and he quickly follows. Unfortunately, the mansion is huge and it takes him a few minutes to find out where Parker is and when he gets there, he see Parker bloodied and glass at her feet.

"You idiot!" He snaps. "You think I wouldn't know who you were! You're mine, spy!" He slaps her and Eliot snaps.

Richard Pryce is unconscious in a matter of seconds and has at least three broken ribs—Eliot made sure of that. The hitter turns to Parker.

"Let me see," He urges and the thief doesn't protest as he examines her wounds. "What happened?"

"He knew," She chokes out and then she begins to sob. Eliot is caught by surprise and isn't sure what to do. "He was going to kill—" The tears overwhelm her now and she breaks down. He does the only thing he can think of and pulls her to him. His arms securely fasten around her and as she buries her head into his shoulder, he pats her head.

"You're safe now," He assures her. "It's ok."

They stay there for awhile and Eliot doesn't mind.

But as soon as Richard Pryce regains consciousness, he is a dead man.

_**Author's Note: **__Mrs. Gabbler Part 4 is coming up soon!_


	53. Request: Soda

_**Author's Note: **__A request from __**Sweetpea2100**__, which was "Maybe we could see a jealous Parker?" It's short, but I think it's what Parker would do. Please enjoy!_

Parker feels angry.

Well, not angry exactly . . . she just feels off. Eliot is talking to a pretty woman and Parker doesn't like it. So, she decides to do something about it. She grabs a can of soda and begins to shake it furiously. Smiling after a few minutes, she goes over to where Eliot is.

"Drink?" Parker asks, beaming.

The woman takes the drink, too focused on Eliot to say thanks. Parker quickly leaves the area when she hears the sounds of a woman shrieking and Parker laughs.

Mission accomplished.

_**Author's Note: **__Review/Request please! _


	54. Request: Red Blanket

_**Author's Note: **__A cute request from __**leveragebetty**__, which was "Parker in a red blanket." I hope you'll like this! Enjoy! _

Parker's like a child in the sense that she always carries a red blanket around with her whenever she's at the team's base. Everyone's baffled by it—except for Eliot.

"What?" He asks when everyone stares at him. "Why does it matter?"

They convince him in a matter of seconds to go and ask Parker. The thief is currently relaxing on the couch, cuddled in her red blanket. She's engrossed with what looks like a documentary on ocean life and glares at Eliot when he taps her on the shoulder.

"What?" She snaps.

"What's with the blanket?"

She instantly pulls it closer to her and he sits down next to her.

"It's fluffy," She confesses.

"And?" He prods.

"And not telling why I carry it around bothers the team," She smiles. "Which I find funny."

He laughs and decides to help her in her crusade to bother the others. After all, what's wrong with some fun and games in-between jobs?

The mystery of the red blanket continues.

_**Author's Note: **__Reviews/Requests are great! _


	55. Darkness

_**Author's Note: **__Yay for plot!_

Eliot doesn't know where he is.

The hitter has been trapped in a lot of places before—half of them not even in this country—but he's never been trapped in the dark. The cells before always had one silver of light that allowed him to get free. With no light, he was going to have to get creative.

"Parker?" He calls softly. "Sophie?"

No response; Eliot is on his own.

He hopes that they're safe though because he couldn't bear it if anything happened to Sophie or Parker. He was supposed to protect them and he failed.

"Be safe,"

_**Author's Note: **__Don't forget to review/request! _


	56. Request: Fear

_**Author's Note: **__A cool request from __**Shezzi **__which was, "__A bad thing, please. I know that in the show at least half the time her reactions are over the top, but I'd really like it not to be Parker just being crazy." I hope you like this! Enjoy!_

A dark gloom has settled over the Leverage Office.

Eliot can sense this as he walks through the door of what he now refers to his as his home. It is then, right as he is closing the door, that he sees her. Parker is slumped over on the couch and her eyes are glazed over. The TV's lights flicker in her eyes and Eliot is quickly by her side.

"Parker?" He asks.

He gets no response.

"Parker," His voice is louder and he pulls the thief to a sitting position. "Parker, can you hear me?" He grips her shoulders and shakes her gently. His skin brushes with hers and Eliot recoils from how hot it is. Cursing, he scoops her up in his arms and moves her to the bedroom in the back. He can't take her to a hospital—they were spotted by police at their last con and need to lay low. So, he settles with getting some ice and placing it on her scorching forehead.

"Cold," She mumbles and finally blinks and dispels the disturbing cloudy look in her eyes. "What happened?" Her voice is quiet and it unnerves Eliot who is so used to rambunctious Parker.

"Dunno," He admits, placing a wet towel on her arms. "I found you slumped over on the couch. Do you remember anything?"

"I got scared," She admits and then shuts her eyes again. Eliot knows what she means. She and he had shared many a sleepless night here together. For her, nightmares of her childhood haunted her while for him, it was about the blood that had been so needlessly shed. Fear plagued them both and they had bonded over it.

He wasn't sure what was wrong with her, but he was damn sure going to find out. As he gently stroked some hair out of her eyes, he swore that he would help her. Because sure, Parker was known for her over the top reactions, but what a lot of people didn't know was that she often had a good reason for those reactions.

"Run," She whispered, instinctively reaching out for help. He offered his hand she clutched it.

"It's gonna be ok," He assured. "I promise."

"Promise," She muttered.

He smiled.

_**Author's Note: **__Mrs. Gabbler part 4 is the next chapter! Request/review please! _


	57. Request: Shoot: Hedda saga part 4

_**Author's Note:**__ You asked for it and you got it. Here is the climax to the Mrs. Gabbler saga. A lot of questions have been asked about this particular series of drabbles and so I have decided to ask my readers for their opinion. Would you like the Mrs. Gabbler saga to be turned into a fully fledged fic or do you think it's best the way it is? Any comment about this is greatly appreciated! Anyways, enjoy!_

Parker can't believe this.

After years of thinking she was safe and free, _she_ had to show up. She had to show up and Parker knows what she wants—her. Mrs. Hedda Gabbler wants her to go back to work for her. As a child, Parker had been ordered by both her and her husband to rob banks and bring the money back to them. The one time she messed up, Mrs. Gabbler had gone to jail and Parker's life had hit rock bottom. Needless to say, she had never messed up a robbery for them again.

It was a Sunday afternoon in August that she had managed to escape. She had managed to lift her window high enough to get out and she had sprinted for what seemed like hours. She had never felt so scared than she had felt in those first few days of freedom. Parker had managed to avoid her private eyes—she had never really stayed in one place for so long before—but now that she was back . . . Parker couldn't handle it. So, she had taken one of the guns and gone after her because she was going to settle this.

Mrs. Gabbler wasn't that hard to find. The older woman had simply waited inside a huge parking garage. She smiled sinisterly when she was the resident thief and the gun.

"Come to kill me?" She questioned. "Well, you're too later, Parker dear, the cancer is already doing that." She laughs as Parker cocks the gun and steps closer to her.

"How dare you?" Parker hisses. "How dare you come back into my life after you turned it into a living hell!" Hedda yawns and checks her watch.

"Will this take long, dear, because I have a meeting later?" She explains. Anger courses through Parker's body and she puts her finger on the trigger. One push and this woman and everything she had done to Parker would be erased. All it took was one push—

And suddenly the gun is out of her hands and in Eliot's. The hitter came almost out of nowhere and now has disarmed her and kicked the gun out of the way.

"Eliot?" She asks, but it's more out of relief than actual shock.

"What the hell were you thinking?" He growls. "You should know better!" She isn't sure what causes it, but she begins to sob. Eliot's fury quickly vanishes and is replaced by worry and concern. "Hey, it's going to be ok?"

There is a clicking noise.

"I'm afraid I have to disagree," The two turn to see Mrs. Gabbler has the gun pointed out at them. "If Parker won't come back to me, then she most certainly isn't going back with you."

Suddenly, everything goes into slow motion.

There is a bang and Parker quickly forces Eliot out of the bullet's path. She feels something grazing her, but she brushes it off and sprints for Mrs. Gabbler. She gets there before another shot can be fired and gets the gun.

Parker points it at her.

"You ruined part of my life," Parker explains strangely calm. "And for that I will never forgive you, but I will not take your life away like you tried to take mine away because that would make me like you and I'm not. I'm a brilliant thief who actually cares about people—I may not understand them, but I do care—and you, Mrs. Hedda Gabbler are not part of my life anymore. So, get out of here and don't try to find me because the next time you show up here, you may not be so lucky."

Mrs. Gabbler stands, smirks, and then vanishes into the darkness of the garage. Parker then turns to Eliot.

"Parker, that was great!"

Funny, her head is starting to become light and her vision is blurring. Still, she smiles and hugs him. She sees red on her hands and feels her eyes widen.

"Eliot,"

"Hmm?"

"I think I've been shot."

Her knees buckle and she doesn't remember hitting the floor.

All she remembers was his voice calling her name and then—

Nothing.

_**Author's Note: **__Part 5 will be the last part if anyone wants it, that is! Review/request please! _


	58. Request: Watchful Guardian: final part

_**Author's Note: **__Finally, this is done! The Mrs. Gabbler saga is done! I'm sad to see this piece end as it was one of my favorites, but I have hope that it will still live on with all of you! This whole saga was started by a request so if you want to see more sagas like it, be sure to make a request! You'll never know what will happen with it! Hey, did you know it'll be my one year anniversary of me joining Fanfiction on May 17__th__. I have an important poll going on about what my special anniversary story should be about so you all should vote. You might surprised about what one of the entries is (hint, hint Eliot and Parker, hint, hint). Anyways, my thanks can't go on long enough to express how happy I am to see that you all enjoyed this saga. Thanks for supporting it! Enjoy! _

He's waiting.

Well, to be fair, they've all been waiting, but to him it feels like an eternity. All he can see in his mind are the images of Parker falling and the blood on her shirt.

She had been shot.

And he had failed to protect her.

He punches a wall that happens to have the misfortune of being next to him and the sound echoes through the quiet waiting room. Nate is glaring at him, but he doesn't care. He doesn't understand how they can all be so calm, so collected, when Parker is being operated on and they don't know about her condition.

Sophie stands up and comes to rest beside him. She looks much older than she is—worry and grief take their toll even on the most experienced actress. Her hand is on his shoulder, but it's of little comfort.

She doesn't say anything—they both know that words are of little meaning right now. But her presence calms him a little bit.

The door opens.

"Miss Parker's family?" the doctor questions. Instantly, the whole Leverage team rises.

"How is she?" Nate asks.

"The bullet just grazed her side and all the damage has been repaired," He smiles. "She'll make a full recovery."

The tension leaves the room. Sophie releases the breath that she seems to have been holding for the past few hours. Nate grins as does Haridson and Eliot . . . he simply asks:

"Can I see her?"

The doctor nods and Eliot goes in. Parker is lying on the bed and he fills the chair beside her and holds her hand.

"Eliot?" She mumbles.

"I'm here." He answers.

"Thank you." She falls back into her sleep, but Eliot feels comforted by her words. He vows then and there to make sure that she's safe.

"Love you," He mumbles.

It's not really a confession, but more of an acknowledgement. He's known for awhile that he's loved her, but this is the first time he's confronting it. One day, when all the memories of Mrs. Gabbler have faded into the past, he'll tell her about his feelings.

And until that day, he'll be there for her because in this world of supposed right and wrong, people like them have to stick together.

And so they will.

Eliot sits with her as she sleeps, ever the watchful guardian.

_**Author's Note: **__Did you like the ending? Review/Request/Vote please! _


	59. Dreams

_**Author's Note: **__Yay for more plot! I like where this storyline is going. _

She's dreaming.

About money, about a family she never had, about anything really. She's aware that they were attacked and she knows that she should probably wake up and do something about that, but for some reason, she doesn't want to. Maybe it's because she knows that her dreams will protect her from the grim reality that she'll be waking up to—a reality where she has two broken ribs, a concussion, and cuts all over her body.

So she sleeps on and dreams.

Because waking up to a reality like the one she's been thrust into is hard to face.

_**Author's Note: **__Reviews/Requests are always accepted with a smile! _


	60. Request: So Small

_**Author's Note: **__An awesome request from __**EOshipper2010**__which was "__A while ago you did one about how they watched "Without A Trace" and they were like "Parker! That's you!" (Don't you love my summary? [fails]) Well, Christian Kane had a part in Carrie Underwood's music video for "So Small" so I was hoping you could do something like the "Without A Trace" one." I love your summary, btw, that's exactly how I would summarize that chapter too! I hope you enjoy this! Anyways, I highly recommend you watch the music video first since this chapter deals a lot with a certain scene in that video and you won't understand it unless you watch the music video. Anyways, enjoy! _

Parker thinks she could get used to this.

It's raining outside and the team has gone to run errands.

"You want some hot cocoa?" Eliot calls from the kitchen.

Well, almost everyone. Eliot stayed with her today because it was rare that they actually got time alone together. Sure, they went out on dates, but most of the time they were too busy busting people to just enjoy each other's company. She's glad that this storm happened because now she finally gets some Eliot's famous hot cocoa.

"Yes, please!" Parker calls as she stops flipping through the channels and ends up on VH1. "With—!"

"Extra marshmallows," He finishes with a smirk. "I know how you like yours." She chuckles and feels happy to be pampered by him. She really loves him—not that she's ready to tell him that—but she's glad that he's here.

"And up next, Carrie Underwood's _So Small_!" Parker yawns. Carrie Underwood isn't her favorite thing in the world, but unfortunately for her, _Without a Trace _isn't on. As Miss Underwood begins to sing, Eliot brings her the drink and she lays herself on his chest.

She drops the cup and gasps.

"Parker?" Eliot asks worriedly. "What is it?"

"No way!" The thief's eyes have widened hugely and Eliot isn't sure whether he should be worried or if this is normal for her.

"What?" He tries to ask her again. "What is it?"

"It's you!" She exclaims, pointing to a man shouting into his cell phone. "You're in this music video!"

Eliot sighs and rolls his eyes. He picks up the cups and then gets up to get a sponge. Hopefully, Nate won't notice the fact that his brand new carpet is covered in hot cocoa.

"Parker, don't be ridiculous," He chides as he returns with a yellow sponge. "Why would I be in a music video?"

"I don't know," She relents. "But that's you!" She springs off the couch and places herself directly in front of the screen. Eliot suppresses a laugh; she looks like a little kid. He cleans the carpet while she watches intently. She gasps when "his" car crashes into the woman's. She smiles when time starts going back. At the end of the video, she's glaring at the woman "he" is reconciling with.

"Parker?"

She's still staring at the TV and Eliot pulls her back from the screen. The last thing he needs to do is explain to Nate how his plasma got broken.

"That was you," It's not a question, but a statement. "I know it was."

"Parker," He's not in the mood to argue with her about this. "Let's just—"

She jumps up abruptly and then promptly kisses him. He's not sure what's going on, but if it means he gets a kiss from her then he's all for it. When they pull apart, she pulls him to her.

"Don't ever leave mad," She orders. "Ok?"

He nods.

It was him in the video, not that he'd admit it. He had been working a job and one of Miss Underwood's workers was his target. He'd gotten in, did his job, and was about to leave when the director of the video thought he was the actor they had hired. He didn't have a choice and played his part. Looking back, this song probably fit him very well and maybe it wasn't just a coincidence that he had been chosen to be a part of it.

He softly sings to the worried thief:

_And then you figure out_

_Love is all that matters after all_

_It sure makes everything else_

_Oh, it sure makes everything else_

_So small_

They kiss once more.

_**Author's Note: **__I really liked this one! Review/Request please! _


	61. Request: Dr Horrible

_**Author's Note: **__A fun challenge from __**pepperdadog**__ who requested, "__If you have, then what if you put Parker in Penny's situation where she's with the "idealistic" man and Eliot's a total looser (though he is Eliot so it'd be a tough feat to make him un-cool). I really like the last scene the best, so if you could do that one that would be great!" I was a little confused by what you wanted, but I tried my best! I hope you like it! Now a few things before you read:_

_1) __**Watch Dr. Horrible's Sing-A-Long Blog or read a summary of it BEFORE you read this. **__Otherwise, you'll be lost._

_2) Listen to "Slipping" since this song is featured in this chapter. _

_3) Enjoy!_

Penny Parker is nervous.

She's sitting onstage while her boyfriend Captain Nate Hammer is prattling on about some hero ceremony. She's happy to support her wonderful boyfriend who single handedly saved a homeless shelter for her cause, but she doesn't like all the attention she's getting—especially from those creepy fan girls of his. Still, she smiles and plays her part of the dutiful girlfriend but she wishes she could just go back to her favorite laundry mat and eat some frozen yogurt with Billy Eliot, the adorable guy that is so nervous all the time!

"So I thank my girlfriend Penny," Captain Hammer says as he points to her. She smiles brightly. "Yeah, we totally had sex." She feels heat rush to her cheeks and quickly sees everyone glaring at her.

"Time to go," She mumbles as she gets down the stairs. Everyone is singing with Captain Hammer when he's suddenly frozen in place.

Evil laughter fills the room and she knows who it is—Dr. Horrible. He's the completely evil nemesis of Hammer and the fact that he's here can only mean something bad is about to happen. Miss Parker tries to hide, but Dr. Horrible has her paralyzed in fear.

_Look at these people  
Amazing how sheep'll  
Show up for the slaughter No one condemning you  
Lined up like lemmings  
You led to the water_

She knows she should run, but his voice is haunting and familiar somehow. Penny feels like she's known him from somewhere and she feels like he's important. She senses pain within him—so much agony—and she wants to help him.

_Why can't they see what I see?  
Why can't they hear the lies?  
Maybe the fees too pricey for them to realize Your disguise is slipping  
I think you're slipping!_

He was pointing at Captain Hammer now and for some reason, she didn't care. She thought about going to him and trying to help him. His pain was hurting her as well and she wanted nothing than to help. She was going to help as soon as she came up with a way to do so!

_Now that your savior is still as the grave  
You're beginning to fear me! Like cavemen fear thunder  
I still have to wonder  
Can you really hear me? I bring you pain  
The kind you can't suffer quietly  
Fire up your brain  
Remind you inside your rioting Society is slipping  
Everything's slipping away…_

It was then that she was able to see that he was holding a gun in his hands, but it wasn't an ordinary one. She squinted and saw that it was a death ray! Oh god, she had to do something to help this man who had obviously let down by someone. He just needed a caring hand.

_So… Go ahead, run away  
Say it was horrible!  
Spread the word, tell a friend  
Tell them the tale  
Get a pic, do a blog  
Heroes are over with! Look at him, not a word  
Hammer meet Nail!  
Then I win, then I get  
Everything I ever_

People were running away, but she couldn't leave. Something wanted her to go closer to the super villain and find out who he really was without those goggles and lab coat on. Was he just a normal guy who had fallen down on his luck? Was he someone she knew?

_All the cash, all the fame  
And social change  
Anarchy, then I run  
It's Dr. Horrible's turn You people all have to learn  
This world is going to burn! Burn!_

He turned to a reporter and pointed at her paper:

"No, it's two "r's". H-O-R-R-, right."

_Burn!_

He was saying something else, but she couldn't hear him. Was he apologizing to someone for his actions? Was he doing this as a service for someone? A nagging question of why lingered in her. The next thing she knew, Hammer was back and Dr. Horrible was on the ground. She wanted to cry out to have Hammer stop, but her voice had vanished. Hammer pointed the death ray at Dr. Horrible and pulled the trigger and then she felt pain. Her breath was coming less frequently and she was beginning to feel cold.

"Penny, Penny?" That voice was so familiar to her . . . it made her feel happy and loved.

"Billy?" She questioned, forcing her eyes open. "Is that you?" There he was and she knew. Billy Eliot was Dr. Horrible. That's why she had felt such a strong connection to him before.

"Penny, hold on," He pleaded, but she could feel the blood coming out of her. She didn't need a doctor to know that was bad. "Oh, no, no, no, no."

"Are you alright?" She needed to know because if he was hurt too—it hurt too much to think about.

"Hold on," He begged and she felt herself becoming tired. She needed to calm him somehow and try to get him to rest.

"It's ok, it's ok," She repeated as she smiled gently. "Captain Hammer will save us."

Her eyes shut.

And then flashed back open as Parker woke up with the credits of _Dr. Horrible's Sing-A-Long Blog _playing on the TV. What a strange dream! She had been Penny who had been dating Nate—ewww!—and then Eliot was the bad guy.

Eliot! That reminded her of the fact that he had been watching with her. It was then that she noticed that she was lying on top of his chest. She and he had fallen asleep together. She blushed even though she wasn't sure why and then smiled. A yawn escaped her lips and she quietly sung:

_Will you lend a caring hand to shelter those who need it?_

Her eyes shut again.

_**Author's Note: **__Review please and don't forget to request! _


	62. Find Them

_**Author's Note: **__Poor Nate . . . _

Nate looks at Sophie.

He's been checking on her every five minutes ever since she got back from the hospital. He's afraid to lose her again and seeing her reminds him of that fact that—for now—she's safe. Hardison has been on his computer ever since they returned back, frantically trying to find any trace of their two missing team mates.

"What about Parker's tracking device?" Nate questions.

"It's offline," Hardison mumbles dejectedly. "And I can't activate it remotely."

He lets Hardison return to work. Sophie stares up at them with a blank expression.

They have to find them.

_**Author's Note: **__As always, review and request please! _


	63. Plan

_**Author's Note: **__Prepare for a shock . . . _

Parker awakens to find herself chained to a bed.

"Not good," She mumbles as the door opens. A woman wearing a professional looking black suit and her hair in a bun walks in with two armed guards beside her.

"Nice to see that you're up, Miss Parker," Her tone is condescending and Parker is already getting pissed off. "Now, let's be frank, shall we?" She sits on the edge of the bed. "I want Eliot dead." Parker's heart skips a beat. "And you're going to help me." She finishes with a bright smile.

Parker gasps and goes into shock.

_**Author's Note: **__Review and Request please! _


	64. Escape

_**Author's Note: **__Poor Eliot . . . I kind of feel bad for him._

He needs to get out of here.

It's an obvious statement, but at the moment it seems like an impossible task. With no light to guide him and no idea where he is, the hitter is taking an incredible risk trying to break out. Still, something inside is compelling him to get a move on and that every second he wastes, Sophie and Parker could be dying. A thought that either one of them being lifeless brings shivers to his spine. He can't allow that to happen.

As he tries to free his arms, a light appears.

Perfect, he thinks.

_**Author's Note: **__Don't you all know the drill by now? Review and request please! _


	65. Request: Bad Luck

_**Author's Note: **__Hello! I finally got around to updating this fic again! Sorry for making you all wait! Anyways, this was a great request or should I say challenge from BlueEyes444 who asked for "Eliot's hit by a sniper's bullet saving Parker." This was one was actually pretty hard to write for me, but I had a lot of fun doing it. I hope you enjoy it! Anyways, Eliot and Parker aren't a couple here. Enjoy! _

"I can't believe this!" Whines Parker as she and Eliot sit down to eat some breakfast. She reaches for her favorite cereal at the moment—her favorites change based on her mood, Eliot notes—and she pours herself a big bowl of _Cocoa Puffs_. "How did they even see me? I was so careful!"

"They just got lucky," Eliot assures her. "Or you got sloppy."

"I did not!" Parker exclaims as she walks over to position herself across from the counter. She pouts as she looks out the huge window that Nate had just installed. Nate said he felt that his apartment was too dark and Sophie had suggested he put in a gigantic window to let the natural light. Nate had complied as so the window was put in. Eliot liked it even though he felt it was a little excessive. Still, it gave the viewer a perfect shot of the city with all the skyscrapers and the park below.

"Well, regardless," Eliot says coolly. "You still got seen by the guards and now our target probably knows who you are."

"Which explains why we are hiding out here," Parker finishes. "But why are you here? I thought I was the only one who needed to be taken off the job."

"Someone needs to babysit you," Eliot informs her and Parker frowns and crosses her arms over her chest. Eliot stifles a smile. "We all picked straws and I got stuck with guard duty."

It's a lie.

He had volunteered to watch over. Eliot was starting to notice now that Parker was becoming increasingly important in his life. In battle, he always made sure she was safe before anything happened to the bad guys and when she got hurt, he would be the first to take care of her. He wasn't sure what was going on, but he figured that his life was starting to revolve around Parker and that might not be such a bad thing.

"Whatever," Parker mumbles as she stands up and stands directly in front of the mirror. "It's not like anyone's actually going to try and hurt me."

Now, Eliot doesn't believe in bad luck, but he had made an exception when it came to Parker. The thief seemed to always have the worst luck in anything except for stealing. She always lost games, she always got caught in the rain without an umbrella, and she always seemed to lose things that she had just had in her hand. Now, considering what she had just said, the hitter began to worry. Their target was the influential mayoral candidate James Morrison. If his guards had seen Parker, then it could only be assumed that they would be able to follow her and pinpoint her to—

"Parker!" He yells as he puts all the facts together. "Get down!"

It's too late though. The glass shatters as the sniper's bullet heads into the apartment. As Eliot dives on top of Parker and pushes the two of them out of the way, he wonders how Nate will react to his new window being destroyed. Eliot quickly asses Parker and is relieved to see that besides from a few cuts from the broken glass that she's ok.

"Eliot," She whispers and he slowly pulls her up and they move to a back room with no windows. "Are you ok?" Her face is directly in front of his and the thought of stealing a kiss from her suddenly appears in his mind.

"Fine," He answers coolly, but in reality, he knows he's not. He can feel glass embedded into his back and he knows that he'll probably have to get stitches as soon as he removes the fragments of glass. He can also feel the sting of a bullet in his side. He mentally curses, but knows that Parker's safety is more important than his own. He grabs her hand and begins pulling her towards the emergency exit that Nate had enough foresight to put in. "C'mon, we gotta get out of here." She nods and the two disappear into the darkness of the tunnel. If Eliot remembers correctly, it should bring them up to their base which has way more security than Nate's apartment.

"Eliot?"

"What?"

"I'm sorry." He spins around and sees her looking guiltily to the ground. He can't resist and he pulls her close to him in an embrace.

"It's ok." He assures her and as her arms wrap around him, he realizes that it really is.

As they let go, the pain in Eliot's side increases ten-fold and Parker is instantly at his side.

"Eliot!" She exclaims as she sees the bullet hole. "Oh my god, we've got to get you to a hospital!"

He's about to answer when he feels himself fall. He can hear Parker call his name as everything fades to nothingness.

Things are not ok.

_**Author's Note: **__Sequel anyone? Also, review/request please! _


	66. Request: Anniversary

_**Author's Note: **__This was a request for Parker and Eliot's anniversary from __**wishyouknew222. **__I'm sorry that I didn't go overboard on the fluff, but I felt like this event should be more serious for Parker. Either way, I hope you all enjoy!_

It's been a month.

One whole month and Parker can't believe it. A month ago, she had been shot and had been rushed to the hospital. She had survived, but the experience had changed Eliot. He became worried easily and insisted on being by her side every second of the day. She hadn't minded, but she was a bit concerned about why he was going out of his way for her. Then, he had said something that had changed her life.

"Parker, I need you," He had told her when they were waiting for a storm to conclude. "I want you to go out with me."

She had been so shocked, but she had said yes and so the two had become an "item" as Sophie liked to say. Strangely, Parker liked being an "item". She liked spending time with Eliot and she liked feeling loved by someone. She liked knowing that there was always someone on her side and someone who would pick her up when she was down.

And now they were celebrating their one month anniversary.

One month, not something most people would celebrate but to them it was huge. Before Nate, they had all worked alone and never stayed in any place for too long. To form personal relationships with anyone was bad and would affect your job performance. So, the fact that she and Eliot have been together for this long was huge.

Sophie had told her anniversaries were a time to celebrate and hope for more of them to come, but to Parker, they were a time to reflect on the progress that had been made—not only as a couple—but as a person. Parker had grown up and matured since she had begun dating Eliot. She had learned that it was ok to love someone and it was alright to be afraid as long as you overcame that fear.

The door opens and Parker smiles.

"You broke in again!" Eliot exclaims with a smirk on his face; Parker smiles. "I gave you a key for a reason."

Some habits die hard.

"Happy anniversary," She mumbles. "Happy one-month anniversary."

He pulls her close to him and kisses her and then slowly pulls back.

"Happy anniversary."

And it was.

_**Author's Note: **__Good, bad, just plain weird? Let me know by reviewing. Also request! _


	67. Request: Nightmares: Fear part 2

_**Author's Note: **__Hello everyone! This a request from __**parkereliotfan **__who wanted a continuation of the chapter "Fear". I hope this is what you wanted! I wish I could draw because I would love to do a picture of this scene at the end . . . oh well, c'est la vie! Please enjoy! _

Parker wakes up the next morning feeling a little weird.

She knows that her feeling weird is no surprise to anyone, but usually Parker wakes up with a strong urge to steal and this morning, she feels like being lazy. She tries to sit up and it's then that she notices the cause of her weirdness.

Eliot is lying next to her—asleep. The hitter never slept.

Ever.

As she is about to wake him—cause frankly Parker doesn't know how to deal with the situation—she notices an expression of pain on his face. She hesitates and tries to decide what to do. Was Eliot—her protective, safe Eliot—having a nightmare? There was no way!

"Eliot?" She mumbles as she leans in closer to his face. She's tempted to go call for help, but Sophie has been teaching her about taking care of others and Parker feels like this is one of the situations that required that particular skill.

He moves suddenly and she jumps back and falls off the couch. She bites her lip to prevent a curse from escaping from her lips and then stands up. What should she do? How could she help Eliot like he had helped her?

He tosses over again and Parker can tell the nightmare is getting worse and then she knows what to do. She lies back down on the couch and holds him. She then closes her eyes and hopes that this will calm him down.

They both sleep peacefully after that.

_**Author's Note: **__Review and request as always! _


	68. Request: Puppies!

_**Author's Note: **__A fun request from __**bprice **__which was "__Parker should steal a pet store or a puppy mill or an SPCA so she can drive the team nuts trying to adopt all the animals!" This was one was lots of fun, but a bit of a challenge to write. I hope you enjoy it though! _

_Bark! Woof! Bark!_

Nate freezes as he's about to put his key into the lock of the team's headquarters. Behind him, Sophie raises an eyebrow. She doesn't like dogs very much. They were way too noisy and they slobbered over everything! Cats on the other hands, they were cool and sophisticated. Cats she could handle—dogs not so much.

"Did you get a dog?" Sophie questions her sometimes lover. "Because I really don't think that—"

"I didn't." Nate explains.

"Then, who—?"

They both exchange a look that explains everything. Sophie rolls her eyes while Nate sighs.

He puts the key into the lock and enters the room. They're not surprised to see who it is, but they are shocked at the severity of the situation.

"Damn," Nate curses and Sophie mutters something that only she can understand. They both realize that this was going to one hell of a long day. "Parker."

"Hi!" She exclaims with a smile and it's only then that Sophie sees the whole room. Parker—the insane thief—has at least ten puppies swarming Nate's room. They are adorable, to be sure, but Sophie is positive that their not Parker's and if they're not Parker's then she probably stole them. "Aren't they cute?"

Sophie has to agree that they are as a little Shiba Inu puppy waddles up to her and demands some of her attention. Sophie debates internally for a moment about what to do, but the puppy's eyes seem to beg for Sophie to pet it and Sophie can't help herself. She bends down and strokes the fluffy fur of the puppy and then gets mob by three others who are just as cute and just as loud.

It's during this scene that Eliot shows up and the Hitter seems utterly confused by the display of events. Parker quickly jumps up—a baby Rottweiler in her hand—and hands the puppy to him. It barks happily and begins to lick his face.

"What the hell, Parker?" He snaps angrily and Parker frowns as she avoids his gaze.

"I might've taken them from pet shop," She muttered guiltily. "But they were so cute! I wanted them!"

They all exchange a glance and they realize that Parker stole these puppies. Sighing, Eliot sits down and gets jumped on by two other puppies. Parker laughs as a little Golden Retriever licks his hand. Sophie sighs and shakes her head, but is actually happy to see these puppies. Nate, on the other hand, isn't too thrilled. Who knows what damage has been done to his apartment and chances are his new bed post has been chewed to bits, but he likes the way Parker is smiling now. She seems so happy and carefree and she's even gotten Eliot to grin now.

And then she says the one thing that everyone has been dreading:

"Can we keep one?"

And that is how, Voleur—French for thief—a cute Shiba Inu puppy came to be the Team's dog.

_**Author's Note: **__Review/Request please! _


	69. Request: Jump!

_**Author's Note: **__The plot is temporarily on hold as I try and get through my requests before I go on my short hiatus—more details of that can be found on my profile—and so I present the request of __**shaneo6930**__, which was a request for Parker taking Eliot base jumping with her. Enjoy! _

He doesn't like this.

Damn it, he really doesn't like this!

When Parker had asked him for help—something the resident thief never did—he had agreed because he wanted to encourage her to keep asking for help. Too many times she had jumped into a situation she couldn't handle and got overwhelmed because she wouldn't ask for help. When she finally did ask for help, Eliot knew he couldn't turn her down.

He just really wish that he had now.

"Ok," Parker said with a grin as she pulled the cords around Eliot tightly. "You should be safe now."

"Why am I doing this?" Eliot growled, but Parker smiled.

"Cause you said you would," She finishes putting her equipment on and then skips to the edge of the building. What Parker did want help in was getting her equipment checked and Eliot had been the lucky one to volunteer. "You ready?"

"Yeah," It's a lie, but what can he do? He had to do this to try and get Parker to understand that it was ok to ask people for help. He doesn't like the fact that they'll be jumping off a skyscraper in a second though. He's afraid to fall, but there's no way in hell he would let Parker know that.

And then something strange happens.

She grabs his hand, flashes a comforting smile, and then they both jump—

Together.

_**Author's Note: **__Review please! _


	70. Request: Angel: Bad Luck part 2

_**Author's Note: **__Hiatus is over though updates will be sporadic due to my limited computer access. I am continuing with requests rather than the main plot simply because I feel my fans deserve some love for putting up with all of this hiatus stuff. Anyway, there's too many people to credit for this one—a sequel to chapter 65—and I really hope you all enjoy it. I like this story more than the Mrs. Gabbler one for some strange reason. I hope you all enjoy! _

"Eliot?" The voice is hard to hear in the darkness of his mind. He's not even sure if it even exists or if he is just making it up. "Eliot!" The voice is crying now and the Hitter wonders why. Why would this angel cry over him? He wasn't worth it—he had done questionable things in his life and so he wondered why an angel would weep for him. "Please, Eliot, please!" He tries to focus on the voice whose melodic tune is being shattered by the sobs racking her. He feels bad and guilty and wants nothing more than to comfort this angel to tell her that he is not worth her tears. "I need you, Eliot." The last statement is quiet and said with a strong sense of fear. "I need you to come back, please!"

He opens his eyes to see Parker looking down at him. Her eyes are red and puffy and full of crystal like tears snaking their way down her face. Her hands are gripping his shoulder for dear life it seems and there is his blood on her shirt. She looks like a scared child—a child that almost lost a parent or someone precious to them.

"Parker," His voice is raspy and it's hard for to him to speak. The pain is dulled which—seeing that he's not in a hospital is probably a bad thing—and he can see that she removed some of the glass from his body. She's been smart and used his shirt as some sort of compress to stop the blood but her eyes are full of pure fear and worry. "You ok?" They're still in the tunnels, but Parker seems to have found the stash of flashlights that Nate keeps down here. The light makes her seem like a fallen angel.

She sobs—more crystal like tears falling from her eyes and hitting his face. He doesn't like this. He doesn't like to see her cry. Her whole body shakes as the sobs eat away at her. Worry must be overtaking her and Eliot knows that having a panicked Parker is not going to help them out any. He manages to lift one hand to place on her silky cheek and he wipes a tear away. She meets his gaze still sobbing, he smiles. He's trying to be comforting to her, but also because he doesn't want her to cry. He's not going to die not when Parker needs him, not when he has to protect his family. That's always been his job—protection. He would die for his family, especially for Parker. But he sure as hell wasn't going to die now—bullet or no bullet.

"Eliot, I—" Her voice shakes with hesitation and he tries to soothe her. "I thought you were dead!" More tears and he feels his heart being cracked. He swears that she will never cry again. She tries to compose herself, but it's no use. The trauma of what had happened is making her afraid of what is to come, if they get out of this cave alive.

"Shh," He murmurs as he forces himself to sit up. She seems stunned as he manages to haul himself up from the ground, but he simply smiles trying to assuage her fears. "It's ok now. You're safe, I'm safe. Just relax." He pulls her to him, letting her cry as much as she needs to in the hopes that she'll get it out of her system so she can think rationally and then move on out of the tunnel.

"I thought you were dead," She repeats over and over again, like a chant. "I thought you had left me!" He strokes his angel's hair and tries to assure her that he's not going anywhere, but he knows it's a lie. He could die at any second from the blood loss or the bullet. He probably couldn't go to a hospital because the sniper most likely saw him. He was a dead man walking.

"I'm not leaving you," He promises. "I will never leave you." He means it and somehow he manages to comfort the sobbing thief and she wipes the last of her tears away. She manages a small smile which Eliot supposed he could live off on for days.

"What now?" She questions. It's a good question too. What do they do now that they had both been spotted and in Nate's apartment? He knew that Nate used a fake name that Hardison had protected in miles of false paperwork, but what if Nate went home?

"How long was I out?" He asks urgently.

"Ten minutes," She stammers. "The snipers haven't shot since then." Eliot breathes a sigh of relief—his father isn't dead.

"Call Nate," He mutters. "Tell him what's going on."

She nods and pulls out their cell phone. Eliot is thanking Hardison so much for placing anti-tracing material in their phones. She explains the situation in short sentences as they make their way to the office. Her breathing is quick and fast and Eliot makes a note to make sure that she doesn't hyperventilate. She tells Nate that Eliot is hurt, but she doesn't explain how badly. After five minutes, the phone is hung up.

They get to the end of the tunnel and go up into the office.

Parker gasps.

The whole place has been trashed and a note on the table simply says:

_ You're all dead. _

_**Author's Note: **__Would anyone like a part 3? Review and request please!_


	71. Request: Homeless part 1

_**Author's Note: **__A request for a series about a homeless girl and the leverage team from **davidtennantdoctorwhotardis**. Sorry it took so long to get this up! I've battled illness and 18 computer viruses! I hope you enjoy the first installment in your series! _

No one is sure how it happened actually. By the time the team had noticed it, it had been three weeks since it had began. That's why the team is having this meeting. Everyone's face is grave and the feeling in the room spells foreboding.

For you see, Nate and Eliot are being followed by adorable five year-old who—after some research done by Haridson—turns out to be homeless. Her parents, according to Haridson, died in a house fire and the girl miraculously survived.

"Who knows how long she's been on the street?" Sophie mutters, a look of worry gracing her beautiful features.

"Poor thing," Nate adds. "She's lucky she's still alive."

"With all the crooks and robbers," Eliot mutters darkly. "It won't be long til someone hurts her."

"So, she follows you two?" Parker questions, the thief taking another bite of cereal.

"Yep," Eliot answers. "From Front Street right up to Almont." Nate nods and then sighs as he rubs his temples in frustration.

"Any surviving family members?" He asks Hardison who shakes his head sadly.

There is a pause as the team tries to figure out what to do.

"I know!" Parker exclaims as she jumps out of her chair and rushes out the door.

"Heaven help us," Sophie mutters. "Who knows what she'll do?"

"Probably bring the girl back here . . . oh crap!" Haridson yells as everyone suddenly realizes that is probably what was going to happen.

"That's going to get her in jail for kidnapping!" Eliot groans as he heads out the door.

And with that, Nate picks up the phone and gets his lawyer on the phone because he's sure that someone is going to need to get bailed out of jail.

_**Author's Note: **__Review please! _


	72. Request: Super Soakers

_**Author's Note: **__Another fun request from __**davidtennantdoctorwhotardis **__who wrote "I still think you should write a story about Eliot and Parker getting 'stalked' by a parker/eliot look-like." Well, I slightly altered your request, but it's basically the same. Please enjoy! _

"They are ripping us off!" She exclaims one morning much to his annoyance. He had been out late, doing some recon for their upcoming con and her loud voice is not the thing that he wants to hear directly in the morning.

"What is?" He asks with a yawn. He needs at least three more hours of sleep. Maybe four.

"The clothes that this couple wears!" He waits for a magazine or a newspaper to be handed to him, but Parker just fumes and glares at him.

"What couple?" He questions, trying to decipher what Parker is trying to say to him.

"The one I see everyday across the street from the office!" She huffs with a "you should've known that" attitude and he jumps up off at the couch and checks the window. Sure enough, there is a woman sitting on a bench dressed in exactly what Parker was wearing yesterday—a green top and jean. Her hair is the same color has even been curled to be the same. Then, Eliot sees the man and anger boils within himself. The guy looks exactly like the hitter. Now, Eliot doesn't really care about style, but damn it he preferred to be one of a kind!

Within seconds, a plan is formed and Parker is gleefully taking orders from Eliot. Nate comes home after a long day of arguing with Sophie on the best way to trick their next target when he see Parker and Eliot drenched. There are water balloons beside them and Nate raises an eyebrow in confusion.

"They had super soakers." Parker explains and Nate rolls his eyes.

The two geniuses in the other room burst into laughter.

_**Author's Note: **__Next few chapters are going to be plot followed by many more requests. As usual, review/request! _


	73. Missing

_**Author's Note: **__Yay for two chapters of plot! _

He has the ropes off in a matter of seconds, the guards unconscious in matter of minutes, and is out of his prison in about ten minutes. Using a cell phone stolen from one of the men holding him prisoner, Eliot calls Nate and prays that the others are alright.

"Nate," Eliot can tell that Nate is frustrated and tired. "What?"

"It's me," Eliot says quickly. "I got out and I need a ride."

"Are you hurt?" Nate's voice has lightened a little. "Is Parker with you?"

Eliot freezes in his tracks.

"What? She's not with you?"

"No,"

Eliot grimaces.

* * *

He's back at headquarters in an hour and is debriefed on what Nate knows. Sophie is sitting on the couch, completely despondent and Eliot can feel how worried Nate is over her, but at the moment, nothing matters but Parker.

Parker, who could be hurt or dead right now.

The thought of her lying still and not breathing makes me feel sick to his stomach. She had to be alive otherwise there would be a lot of hell to pay for whoever did dare to touch her. But, he had to believe she was alive.

"Please," He murmurs. "Please Parker."

_**Author's Note: **Review/request please! _


	74. What He's Done

_**Author's Note: **__I really like where this plot is going and I hope you all do too! More requests are coming up soon! _

"What?" Parker asks, unsure if she heard correctly. "You want to use me to get to Eliot?"

"Did I stutter?" The woman snaps viciously. "You are the ticket to my killing Eliot."

"I don't understand," Parker exclaims, panic in her voice. "Why do you want to kill Eliot?"

"Because he killed my husband!" The woman cries, anger in her eyes and Parker gasps. Eliot killed her husband? But Eliot would only kill bad guys, right? Isn't that how the hitter operated?

"You're lying!" Parker yells, trying to break free of the restraints.

"Am I?" The woman questions. "You'll never know."

_**Author's Note: **__As always, review and request! _


	75. Request: Cake!

_**Author's Note: **__A fun request from __**FallIntoAHellCalledLove**__ which was "How about Parker attempting to cook or bake and well...doesn't go well...and Elliot steps in?" I now really want cake from this! Please enjoy! _

It was supposed to be simple.

At least, that's what the lady on the Food Network had promised when Parker had decided to make this cake. Parker loved sweets and if she had a choice, she would rob chocolate stores for her living, but oddly enough, they usually had the tightest security.

Go figure.

Anyways, the team had just busted a crooked lawyer yesterday and everyone was exhausted. To catch the bad guy, they had to create a fake trial with Nate serving as judge and the whole thing was pretty hard to pull off. Still, good had triumphed over evil and now Parker thought that having some cake would be a good idea.

Nobody told her cake was so hard to make. Nate's kitchen was a mess. Flour coated the floor like snow and cracked eggs decorated the counter top. Parker herself was covered in a fine dusting of sugar and vanilla and she was about ready to kill Miss-what's-her-name that was telling her how simple and how easy cakes were to make. Yeah, right!

To make matters worse, she was sure Voleur was laughing at her. He was sitting on his little bed, far away from the chaos and was just observing her, occasionally barking if he felt like it. Parker glared at him, but he still seemed to making fun of her.

The door opened and Parker shut her eyes, waiting to get yelled at by an angry Nate who was sure to be pissed off by the mess in the room. Voleur barked happily and sprinted over to greet the newcomer and to Parker's surprise, she heard laughter.

"What?" The thief spun around, only to see Eliot grinning at her.

"What the hell are you doing?" He questioned as Voleur barked, vying for his attention as Eliot began to pet him.

"Making a cake?" Parker told him sheepishly. Eliot rolled his eyes and with one final pat to Voleur, headed over to the counter top and looked at the program Parker was watching. Nodding, he checked at what mess Parker had already made and then nodded once more.

"I need two eggs and three cups of flour," Eliot began and Parker quickly got him the ingredients. "You clean up and I'll make this. Nate won't ever know." He said the last part with a smirk and Parker couldn't help but hug him. He had saved her like a superhero. He had swooped in when she had needed him most. That was the best thing about Eliot—he was always there when you needed him, ready to help out.

An hour later, an exhausted Nate returned to find his kitchen spotless and a piece of cake sitting on the counter. He picked up the card that was placed next to the slice and read it:

_Made cake with Eliot's help. Try it. _

_-Parker _

Nate chuckled as he took a bite of the cake. That guy could bake!

And within a few minutes, Nate began to formulate a plan of how to get more cake from Eliot and Parker.

_**Author's Note: **__I always take requests so please submit them if you have them! And review please! _


	76. Request: Choose

_**Author's Note: **__Miss me? It's been awhile since I updated . . . sorry for that. Anyways, this is a request from __**bookfreak79 **__which was "How about something where Eliot and Hardison are fighting over Parker and she chooses Eliot?" I altered this request and went with a little something different. I hope you don't mind and enjoy nonetheless! I've gotten a lot of questions about requesting so here are the rules in case you forgot. They are also on my homepage. __**If you do not follow these guidelines, your request will not be done. **_

_1) __**I DO NOT ACCEPT M-rated requests**__. Please only give me T or below. _

_2) A request can consist of a word (ex: fear), a phrase (ex: Cookies are yummy!), or a situation (ex: Parker and Eliot at a club). _

_3) To submit a request, simply place it in your review. I fulfill requests in the order they were submitted. _

_Enjoy! _

She supposed that this was a dream.

That would explain the weird white outfit she was wearing. Seriously, she had to stop watching Jane Austen movies with Sophie because this was getting ridiculous! Grabbing the skirts of her 18th century white gown, Parker made her way through the foggy hall and into the Leverage headquarters where Sophie was sipping some tea.

"Ah Parker!" Sophie grinned devilishly and Parker raised her eyebrows inquisitively. "You'll need to hurry along now. They were fighting and it seems to have gotten quite violent. They need you." A door was now before the thief and Parker wondered if she should go through it.

"But Sophie who was fighting and—!"

"You need to choose."

And with that, Parker felt herself thrust through the open door and she felt herself fall into an endless abyss. When she gracefully felt herself glide to the ground, Parker gasped. Eliot and Hardison were lying on the ground, unconscious and bleeding.

"No!" Parker exclaimed as she felt her head whip around looking for some sort of help. A pale hand rested on Parker's shoulder and woman in a black robe glanced at the dismal scene grimly.

"You can only save one," Parker's heart skipped a beat. "Choose."

Her feet began moving before she could even process what was going on. She was by Eliot's side in a matter of seconds, pressing one hand into his wound, trying to stop the bleeding. Her white dress was being stained by crimson and Parker took a moment to glance at Hardison. She couldn't leave him like that!

"Help! Help me!" Parker screamed, her voice piercing the darkness.

"Who do you choose?" A grim voice questioned and Parker shook her head. "You must choose!"

"I won't!" Snapped the thief. "I need them both!" The ground shook around her and a blinding light engulfed her vision. What was going on here?

"Parker?" Her eyes flew open to see Sophie hovering above her anxiously. On the TV, the credits of Pride and Prejudice were scrolling down the screen. "What's the matter?"

"You'll have to choose," A voice echoed sinisterly behind her. "One day, you will."

Parker cried in Sophie's open embrace.

_**Author's Note: **__As always, review and request! _


	77. Shades of Gray

_**Author's Note: **__I do enjoy some suspenseful plot! More requests will follow shortly. Please enjoy! _

"Eliot . . . Eliot would never do such a thing!" Parker screams and for a second, the thief can swear that she sees pity in her captor's eyes.

"Love truly is blind," The woman mutters, cracking her knuckles in a sort of nervous gesture. "You really don't know what he is capable of, do you?"

"He keeps us safe," Parker informs her, a look of defiance etched into the thief's features. "That's what counts."

"But keeps you safe from whom?" The lady asks calmly. "From bad guys?" Parker nods and the woman laughs. "There is no good or bad, Parker. Only shades of gray."

_**Author's Note: **__As always, review and request please! _


	78. Request: Revenge

_**Author's Note: **__A sweet request from __**mfaerie32**__ which was "Parker gets "attacked" and Elliot loses his control, she has to bring him back to himself." I got something similar to this in a different request that I did earlier, but I still wanted to do this! My take is a bit more subtle than yours, but I hope you still like it! And as a general note, all Halloween requests will be posted on October 29__th__! Please enjoy! _

Nate doesn't want to tell him.

But being the leader of this do-gooder gang, he knows the news must come from him. Besides, Sophie and Hardison were still with her, trying to figure out what happened and how she managed to get away. Nate sighs as the door opens and Eliot walks in. One look at Nate's face and Eliot already knows it's something bad.

"Who's hurt?" Eliot questions quickly, fury beginning to course through his veins. Whoever had dared to lay a finger on any of his family was going to be dead meat.

"It's Parker."

Eliot freezes. He wasn't expecting that.

"What?" The hitter asks, unsure if he heard Nate right. How could Parker be hurt anyway? She was too sly to get caught and even when she did get caught she was able to get away.

"Parker," Nate informs him somberly. "She, um, well she was mugged on her way home."

"No . . ." Eliot shakes his head, refusing to believe it. A mugging? A common, everyday crime happened to Parker? No way, that was just impossible. Parker wasn't supposed to be at risk just walking on the street. She was supposed to be fine and safe—isn't that why this city had cops?

"She's ok," Nate adds after a moment of silence. "Guy roughed her up quite a bit, but Parker says she used the self-defense you taught her to get away." Eliot nods, but he's not really paying attention. Parker had gotten away now, yeah, but what about the next time or the time after that?

"Who did it?" Eliot growls as he reaches for his coat. Nate doesn't answer and this infuriates the already angry Eliot. "Nobody attacks one of us and gets away with it! Now, who was it?"

"Eliot, calm down." Nate's voice is tired and even though Eliot knows he had a rough night, he doesn't care. He was going to take down this creep once and for all.

"Tell me!"

"Eliot," Her shaky voice diminishes his anger immediately. He turns around to face her and sees Sophie supporting her. There is a bandage wrapped around her forehead and she has a few minor cuts and bruises on her face. "Don't."

He takes a step towards her, ready to argue, when she begins to cry. All he can do is hold her in his arms and try to reassure her that she'll be ok. Right now, vengeance doesn't seem too important. Revenge doesn't matter.

All that does matter is her.

_**Author's Note: **__Please review! _


	79. Request: Halloween part 1

_**Author's Note: **__There were a lot of requests for Halloween so I decided to do a fun two part request. Part two will be uploaded tomorrow! _

No one is exactly sure how this happened.

If you ask Nate, he'll just shrug and mutter something under his breath about how he had no choice. Sophie will flash a smile and excitedly chatter about what she's going to wear. Hardison won't even look up from his computer screen. And Eliot . . . well, let's just say that Eliot will just death glare you.

Still, this is an opportunity that comes once a year—Halloween. The time where children dress up in the hopes of achieving their goal of getting tons of free candy and adults throw parties. However; if you are a part of the Leverage Team, you know that Halloween is a taboo subject. Nate doesn't like to waste time when the team could be helping deserving people out.

No one apparently let Parker in on this.

For on the 1st of October, she went sprinting up to Nate demanding that the team get dressed up and eat lots of candy. Nate had looked at her like she was crazy but Parker held steadfast. After a 1,000 pleases later, Nate had given in and proclaimed that the Leverage Team would dress up and celebrate Halloween. Sophie had been ecstatic and had promised to help the team out on their costumes. As Parker watches Sophie scurry around their headquarters trying to get everything ready, she can't help but wonder if Halloween was going to be as fun as it sounded.

"Parker, c'mon!" Sophie yelled and Parker grinned.

It had to be!

_**Author's Note: **__Please review and be sure to read tomorrow where the Leverage Team will try to have a normal Halloween . . . _


	80. Request: Halloween part 2

_**Author's Note: **__And finally, part 2! Happy Halloween everyone! Please enjoy!_

And after three weeks of preparations, the day had finally arrived.

Halloween—the time for candy and scares. The one day where you could pretend to be someone that you weren't and get away with it. For Parker, this would be her first Halloween. Before, Parker had been shuffled out of foster homes around this time and so she was unable to fully enjoy the holiday. On the rare occasions when she had been in a home at the time, her family wouldn't celebrate it.

"Damn kids," They would mutter. "Stupid punks."

So now . . . finally, Parker could celebrate this holiday that she had so wanted to be a part of since day one. Sophie had told her to leave everything up to her and now Parker was waiting anxiously to get her costume. The door finally opened and Sophie appeared dressed as a black cat. Parker was about to comment about how a cat wasn't really that cool to be dressing up as, but Sophie quickly grabbed her hand.

"C'mon!" Sophie exclaimed as Parker was dragged into her room. "Close your eyes!" Parker did as she was told and she heard the rustle of various bags and clothes. "Open." Parker slowly did so and gasped. For on Sophie's bed was the most beautiful pink gown. It was truly fit for a princess with its lacy undercoats and shiny material. Parker hesitantly felt the cloth and smiled.

"It's . . ." Her voice trailed away out of astonishment.

"Do you like it?" Sophie asked, anxiously hovering behind her.

"Yes!" Parker exclaimed and Sophie grinned.

"Well, don't just stand there," Sophie began. "Get into it because we have a party to attend to."

Twenty minutes later and Parker was ready for the ball. Sophie had done her hair as a bun and adorned her head with a crown. Parker grinned as she saw the dress fit her like a glove. Never before had she ever seen herself look so beautiful. It was hard to believe that this was her.

They left for the party which was being held at Nate's humble abode. Nate opened the door and Parker saw that he was Batman and Parker laughed. It was kind of funny that he identified himself as a lone superhero. Hardison smiled as she entered and Parker saw that he was dressed up like a typical geek.

And Eliot . . . well, this was something she was sure was Sophie's doing. For you see, Eliot was dressed up as a Prince. While he didn't seem all that too pleased with the idea, Parker had to admit he looked handsome and totally hot. His eyes lit up upon seeing Parker and he came before her. He bowed and Parker curtsied.

And the strangest thing was, it was like they were the only two people in the world at that moment. He took her hand and pressed a gentle kiss to it. Parker blushed. She liked Halloween, oh yes.

For it was the only time that Eliot would ever act like the prince Parker knew he was.

_**Author's Note: **__Happy Halloween and please review! _


	81. 12 hours

_**Author's Note: **__I really like this drabble. I don't why . . . I just did. I hope you all enjoy! _

It's been 12 hours since Eliot escaped.

12 hours that Parker has been with whoever kidnapped her.

12 hours that she could be lying in pain or possibly dying.

12 hours was a hell of a long time.

For those 12 hours, Nate has been the rock of the team. Calmly giving out orders and quietly checking on Sophie. Eliot thinks that for these 12 hours, Nate has really been panicking—not that his face would ever betray him. As Eliot sits and waits, he wonders what Parker has been thinking for 12 hours.

He hopes that she's not counting the hours.

_**Author's Note: **__Review and request please! _


	82. Request: Banana

_**Author's Note: **__Sorry for the long delay, I've been really sick. This is a request from __**Anna**__ who actually asked for a drabble that I used as an example. The request was for a drabble that used this line, "Parker, why is there a banana on your head?" I must say, I was pretty stumped with this one. I hoped it turned out well! Enjoy!_

"Parker, why is there a banana on your head?"

It was just another day at the office and while the others had decided to head home, Eliot had stayed behind to check locks and other things that could compromise security despite the fact that Hardison swore that their own alarm system was the best on this Earth. Now Eliot believed him, but that didn't stop his protective nature from checking anyways.

"Hm?" Parker questioned as she titled her head a little to the left in confusion. "What did you say?" Eliot sighed and ran a hand through his hair. After noticing that Eliot would be staying in the office, Parker had agreed to stay with him in order to keep him company. Eliot didn't need anyone to stay with him, but Parker seemed to have other plans and she had been scurrying around the office like a little mouse. Eliot was getting pretty worried over her because the weirdest part of it all was that she was being quiet.

"The banana," He repeated slowly as he pointed to her blonde hair which surely enough had a banana in the middle of it. "Why is it on your head?"

And then she does something so characteristically Parker.

Slowly, she takes the banana off her head, grins, and then scurries into another room. Eliot sighs but can't help but to grin just a little bit.

He loves her—he just doesn't know it yet.

The next time she asks to keep Eliot company, the hitter doesn't protest. There's no one he'd rather spend time with even if he doesn't understand her half of the time.

_**Author's Note: **__Please review and request please! _


	83. Request: Okay: Bad Luck part 3

_**Author's Note: **__Too many people to thank for this sequel . . . I just hope it lives up to your standards! Enjoy!_

"What?" Parker mutters in sheer disbelief as she looks over the destruction. "What happened?" Eliot grimaces—not from the pain of having a bullet in his side although now that he thought about it, it did hurt like hell—at the fact that they've been found out. Who knows how lucky they've gotten? They could've just missed the thugs that were sent to get them!

"Call Nate," Eliot orders grimly. "Find out where he is." Parker nods and pulls out her cell phone as Eliot forces himself to sit down for a few seconds. He can feel the glass and the bullet and he wonders what would happen if he just removed them himself . . . the thought quickly disappears when he realizes that the blood loss would probably do him in.

"Two minutes," Parker answers and Eliot can see the panic in her eyes. "Are we going to be ok?"

"Yeah," Eliot lies, mustering up his best smile. "Yeah, they won't be coming back. They just wanted to leave a message." Parker nods vigorously in agreement and Eliot can tell that she's been reassured for the moment but he is far from comforted. Knowing that they were found out, Eliot could only hope that he would be able to protect his family from this new threat. The door bursts open and Nate storms in, Sophie and Hardison trailing behind him.

"What the hell?" Nate mutters in disbelief while Sophie comes over to Eliot's side.

"He's been shot!" Sophie exclaims and instantly all eyes are on Eliot. The hitter frowns. He doesn't need this extra attention right now.

"What happened?" Hardison asks, his eyes wide with disbelief. He watches Sophie fetch some towels and try to stop the bleeding but he can tell it's not going well.

"Morrison saw Parker, had snipers try to shoot her, and then tried to get us," Eliot explains, trying to hide the pain but failing miserably. "They know." Nate curses and then runs a hand through his hair. Hardison still looks like a deer in the headlights and Parker . . . well, she just looks scared.

"Eliot," Sophie says calmly and Eliot can tell she's doing her best trying not to freak Parker out. "You need medical attention. Now."

"But we can't take him to a hospital!" Parker protests. "They'll see him and try to get him!" Sophie smiles gently at her and musters up some more cheerfulness in her tone. Eliot makes a note to thank her after this mess is over for looking out for Parker.

"It's alright," Sophie assures her. "We've got some doctors of our own, don't we Nate?" A look is shared between the two that speaks volumes. Nate nods slowly and pulls Hardison aside. Eliot can't hear what they're saying because for some reason he feels a bit lightheaded.

"Damn," He mutters as he realizes that he's losing too much blood. "Sophie—"

"You'll be alright," Sophie informs him. "I promise." She shoots him a small smile and then gets up and joins Nate and Hardison's conversation. Eliot can see the room spinning. Parker is next to him, her eyes frantically looking at the bloodied towels. He grabs her hand and she flinches at the contact.

"It's gonna be okay," He lies because he knows he's lost too much blood and if he didn't get a transfusion soon, he was done for. "Don't worry, Parker." She says something but he can't hear. His vision is being blurred and being covered in black spots. He squeezes her hand and then realizes how warm it is. He's a goner, he concludes, but realizes there's something that he's always wanted to do before he died. Parker is crying now and Eliot smirks as he wipes a tear away.

"Eliot!" She sobs.

"Crybaby," He mutters as he gently pulls her face towards his. "It's okay." Her eyes widen in shock as their faces get closer and closer. He kisses her forehead and then feels himself slump back. Parker is calling him once more and he can hear frantic footsteps but he figures it's over with.

He's always lived with no regrets and now that he's dying, he realizes that he only has one—

He wishes he had kissed Parker much earlier.

_**Author's Note: **__Sequel? _


	84. Request: Babysitting

_**Author's Note: **__I liked this request a lot! This is from __**mfaerie32**__, who asked for "The one where Parker and Eliot babysit a client's toddler." I hope you enjoy! Also, tomorrow will mark the one year anniversary of this fic! I can't tell you how pleased I am will the overwhelming response this fic has generated. Thank you all! Also, last year I did Christmas as part of the story's main storyline. Would anyone like to have a random side chapter dealing with Christmas? Or better yet, does someone want to request something to do with Christmas for me to write about? Let me know! And once again, thank you! _

It was supposed to be simple.

How hard could it be to watch a client's toddler while Nate discusses how he's going to help the couple? True, Eliot didn't really like kids but he could handle watching over them if he was forced to—which, in this case, he was because he lost rock-paper-scissors with Hardison—but being forced to watch a toddler with Parker . . .

Now, that was a different story entirely.

The last time Parker had been with a kid, she had taught said kid how to break open a lock in about 30 seconds. Needless to say, the parents were not pleased. Which is way, Eliot thinks, she needs a partner. Why that partner has to be him, he doesn't know, but a partner nonetheless.

"Awwww!" Parker coos, playing a clapping game with the two-year old girl. "So cute!" Eliot has to agree. The young girl—Mari—has blonde, curly hair and is dressed in a ruby red dress and white tights. In Eliot's eyes, she looks a little like a princess.

"So, Parker, what are we not going to do?" Eliot asks, which earns him a glare from Parker. "No thief related activities." She nods her head in agreement, but seems to be more focused on the toddler.

"Let's play dress up!" Parker exclaims which elicits a cheer from Mari. Eliot is about to protest, but Parker has already scooped the girl up in her arms and is running down the hall. Eliot sighs and follows. The sight that greets him makes him speechless. Parker had decked Mari out in a complete Sleeping Beauty gown and is now hurriedly applying a little make-up and some jewelry. Mari looks thrilled and even though Eliot has no clue how Parker got a princess costume, he can't help but smile.

Parker looks so happy and so motherly. For a second, he imagines her holding his child and dressing her up. But instantly, the moment is shattered when Parker asks him his opinion of Mari's outfit. He smiles and nods his approval and Parker picks up Mari and spins her around. Both of the girls are laughing and it's a perfect sight to see.

He never knew Parker could be so motherly and so . . . so normal. Keeping Mari in her arms, Parker holds her and strokes her head. Mari smiles and shuts her eyes and is soon asleep. This causes Parker to panic and Eliot swiftly takes the child from her and holds her in his big arms.

"Wow," Parker mutters as Eliot puts the girl down on his bed. They exit the room and slowly close the door.

"What?" Eliot questions.

"It's just . . . you seemed so different when you held her,"

"Meaning?" Eliot asks. Parker grins and twirls around in a little circle.

"You seemed so fatherly," She stops spinning and meets his gaze. "And protective, but mostly, you seemed kind of happy." She grins and then skips down the hall without giving Eliot time to reply.

No, Eliot wants to tell her, you seemed so happy.

Next time there's a babysitting job available, no one needs to draw straws because Eliot and Parker got it covered.

_**Author's Note: **__Please review! _


	85. Call

_**Author's Note: **__Usually, I'm so good at updating this fic . . . sorry for the long delay, everyone! Also, I'm sorry that I missed the Christmas drabbles! Real life just got so busy . . . anyways, here's some plot. More to come tomorrow. _

"Let me go!" Parker demands, faking bravado. The woman laughs dryly.

"You really are an idiot, aren't you?" The woman asks, her voice dripping with false sweetness. "You are the key to my plan, Parker. Do you really think I would let you go now?" The woman turns to one of her body guards, a man with a shiny bald held. He hands her a cell phone and she smirks. Pressing a few numbers, she places the device to her ear.

"What are you—?" Parker doesn't get a chance to speak.

"Eliot?" The woman asks. "We need to talk."

_**Author's Note: **__Review as always, please! _


	86. Melissa and Thomas

_**Author's Note: **__Two plot pieces for the price of one! Enjoy!_

His phone rings and at first he thinks nothing of it. It's when he sees that the number is blocked that his interest if piqued. He gets up slowly, leaving Nate to think of ways to find Parker, and heads into the other room.

"Eliot?" A familiar voice asks on the other end of the line. "We need to talk." He almost drops the phone in shock as he realizes who he's speaking too.

"Melissa?" He questions, needing to make sure.

"You know what they say about payback, Eliot?" She laughs and he freezes. "It's a bitch."

She hangs up.

* * *

His mind can't process what is going on for a few seconds. Melissa . . . He feels anger boil up within him, but realizes that this is his fault to begin with. When he had left to go and deal with his past, what he had actually been doing was repaying a debt to Thomas, Melissa's husband. Thomas . . . Eliot had owed him for so much. He had saved Eliot's life, after all. It was just supposed to be one more job and then Eliot could finally put this behind him.

Thomas had died on that last job; Melissa had blamed him.

And now she had Parker.

_**Author's Note: **__Review as always, please! _


	87. Request: TV Time

_**Author's Note: **__One of the fun requests from __**Howdy Ya'll **__which was "Parker with a flamethrower." This was hard to explain for some odd reason, still I hope you enjoy! Also, there are a few references to Buffy in this drabble so you might want to Google it to get the gist of parts of this drabble. To all who requested requests, I am slowly working my way through them all. Please be patient and I apologize for the delay! Please enjoy! _

He supposes that he could blame Hardison for this mess.

The hacker was the one who had let Parker watch TV unsupervised. After the incident in Chicago where Parker had watched an episode of _Law&Order_ and decided that Nate's apartment had to be searched—and all his stuff destroyed or thrown out the window—there had been an unspoken rule that Parker couldn't watch TV without supervision.

So, what does Hardison do the moment the rest of the team is gone?

He lets Parker watch a few episodes of _Buffy the Vampire Slayer_. Specifically, the episodes where there is a flamethrower involved.

You can see where this is going, right?

Parker + flamethrower = Huge problems for Eliot.

"Eliot," She greets cheerfully, as if nothing is wrong. "Did you see my new toy?" Smiling brightly, she shows him her homemade flamethrower. Eliot doesn't ask how she got the material or how she even learned how to make it, but he simply holds out his hands and waits.

"Give it," He orders silently. Parker frowns and seems like he's ordered something utterly ridiculous. "Parker, come on."

"Buffy got one," She protests, clutching the flamethrower. "And Giles never complained." Eliot sighs. He really doesn't have time to explain to Nate why their headquarters caught on fire and because of that, Parker needs to give in.

"Buffy is a TV show," He reminds her gently. "TV shows don't play in the normal realms of reality, Parker, you know that." She smirks and laughs softly.

"And we do?" She challenges which causes him to smirk a little bit. A bunch of ex-criminals doing illegal things to take down other bad guys was pretty farfetched.

"I don't want you to hurt yourself," He confesses as he gently pries the weapon from her hands. "This is dangerous."

"Live a little, Eliot!" She exclaims, her voice bubbly and full of happiness. "Everything is ok!"

He knows he's being hard on her. He knows he sounds more like an overprotective dad than one of her friends, but he can't help it. When it comes to Parker, he just can't help himself. He wants her safe at all times. He needs her to be protected. Losing her . . . hell, he couldn't even finish the thought—it was that painful.

Parker prances off, the flamethrower forgotten for now.

No one told Eliot that she also watched the home gardening channel.

"Crap!" He curses as he walks in on Parker knocking down Nate's bedroom wall. She looks at him innocently and says:

"I was trying to help."

From then on, Parker was forbidden from watching TV.

_**Author's Note: **__Review please! And request as well! _


	88. Request: Secret

_**Author's Note: **__A request from __**Vampires-a-z **__which was about doing a secret relationship between Parker and Eliot. This is a bit short, but I had fun with it! I am so sorry that I am so behind on requests, but rest assured that I will get to every single one of them. But for now, could everyone just submit one request at a time? Otherwise, it will take me forever to catch up! Thanks! Enjoy! _

Sophie knows something is going on.

Sure, she doesn't have any proof, but that hasn't stopped her before. The only fact she needs is that for the past few weeks Parker and Eliot have been acting strangely—even more so than usual in Parker's case.

And Sophie—being as wise as she—is determined to get to the bottom of what is going on.

"Sophie," Nate sighs as he catches her about to sneak into Eliot's office. "What are you doing?" She spins around and confronts her sometimes love. Innocently smiling, she replies:

"Nothing!"

He frowns.

"Nothing?"

"Nothing!"

Sighing, he leaves her with a warning about Eliot's temper, but she doesn't care. Parker and Eliot are keeping a secret and she needs to know what it is. The door is locked but with a hairpin and a few tricks she picked up from Parker, she is able to open the door only to see Eliot and Parker.

Kissing.

She runs through that last sentence again. Eliot and Parker were kissing right in front of her. The two broke apart quickly but Sophie shuts the door and proceeds to quickly walk away from the room. Nate regards her curiously as she sits by him and steadies herself.

That night, Parker and Eliot shyly tell the others that they are dating. Hardison smiles, Nate says he knew it was coming, and as Parker anxiously meets her gaze waiting for her approval, Sophie can't help but say—

"It's about time."

Parker hugs her and Sophie grins. She's glad. Eliot will take good care of her, but more importantly, they're happy together.

Sophie silently prays that they'll always be like that.  
__

_**Author's Note: **__Review and request please!_


	89. How?

_**Author's Note: **__A bit longer than a hundred words, but I really wanted to start the ball rolling on Thomas' origin story. Please expect a lot more plot updates soon! Please enjoy! _

He was strong, smart, but also had a strong sense of duty. Frankly, the guy reminded Eliot of a real-life superhero. He was a bit older than Eliot and he was also better at what he did. He could knock a guy out with a single punch. He could dodge ten bullets without breaking a sweat. He was also a hell of a person who truly loved his wife.

All of these reasons were why Eliot had agreed to do that last job. How was he supposed to know that his hero would end up on the floor, bleeding out? How was he supposed to know that Thomas would die because of him?

Eliot collapses into a chair and places his head in his hands.

How was he supposed to know?

_**Author's Note: **__Review and request please!_


	90. Flashback 1: A Vase

_**Author's Note: **__More plot! So, this takes place about two years before the pilot of Leverage. Yay for flashbacks! Enjoy! _

"It's one job, Eliot," Thomas assured him. He was a muscular man, about 5'9, with cropped chestnut hair. He placed a tanned hand on Eliot's shoulder, his golden wedding band shining. "We can handle it."

"It's a dangerous job," Eliot corrected. "With a lot of unnecessary risks! Thomas, you know I trust you, but this is crazy!"

It was crazy. Stealing back a vase that was being guarded by armored guards in a huge, white southern mansion was insane.

"Eliot—,"

"Just tell me why. Why this job?" Thomas sighed and rubbed his temples.

"It's was Melissa's mother's vase, ok?"

Eliot didn't say anything. Melissa's mother had been dead for two years but the pain from her loss had never dulled. Eliot had met her once. She was a kind woman with a lot of love in her heart. Melissa hadn't eaten or slept for days when she found out. It was a painful memory for Eliot.

"Thomas—" His mentor shot him a pleading look.

"This one job, ok? And then your debt to me with be fulfilled."

Eliot nodded. He owed Thomas after all.

How hard could stealing a vase be?

_**Author's Note: **__Review and request please!_


	91. Flashback 2: Intrusion

_**Author's Note: **__It's been awhile . . . To be honest, I needed a break from this fic, but now I am back with more energy than ever! Please enjoy! _

Eliot always felt like he was intruding whenever he was around Thomas and Melissa. The two had such a strong bond of love that Eliot had never experienced. Even standing a few feet away, Eliot could feel their sadness at parting. Melissa was crying and Thomas was trying to reassure her that everything would be okay.

"I've got Eliot with me," Thomas informed her with a small smile. "He'll make sure I'm safe."

But on that day, everything changed.

By the end of that day, Thomas was dead and Melissa was devastated.

And Eliot was all alone again.

_**Author's Note: **__Tomorrow, we'll find out how Thomas died. Please request/review! _


	92. Never Forgive

_**Author's Note: **__I'm back! I needed a little break from fan fiction since I was getting burned out, but I'm here now! So, here's a bigger plot segment to make up for my absence and I'll post a request piece later today. Please enjoy! _

It had all happened so fast.

One minute, they were both breaking into the mansion and the next they were fighting off all the guards. Even outnumbered 40 to 2, they were doing quite well and Eliot had felt confident that they were going to succeed in their mission.

Maybe it was his overconfidence that caused him to get sloppy. Whatever it was, it caused Eliot not to see the man 20 feet from him, pointing a rifle at him.

But Thomas had seen the man with the gun.

So, he had done what Eliot would've done if their situations were reversed. He pushed Eliot out of the way and was shot directly in the chest.

He died instantly.

Melissa had been devastated and Eliot could only sit there as she called him every name in the book in-between her bouts of crying.

"I'll never forgive you!" She had cried. "Never!"

And that was okay with Eliot, because he would never forgive himself.

But now Melissa had Parker and that meant Eliot would have to confront his past once more. He would have to stop Melissa. If she wanted revenge, then he could take it out on him and not Parker. He deserved her wrath—not Parker.

"What is it?" Nate glances up from one of the many computer screens and meets Eliot's gaze as Eliot walks back into the room.

"I know where Parker is." Nate's expression is puzzled, but he keeps his expression neutral. Eliot knows he'll want the full story after Parker is safe and sound, but for now, Nate is alright without explanations.

And for that, Eliot is grateful.

_**Author's Note: **__Review and Request please! _


	93. Request: Home: Homeless saga part 2

_**Author's Note: **__Part 2 of the Homeless saga as requested by __**davidtennantdoctorwhotardis**__**. **__Please enjoy! _

True to form, Parker got herself arrested—though not for kidnapping.

"The charges against both of them are stealing," The officer replied calmly as Nate glanced to an anxious Eliot at his side. It was clear that the hitter was making this cop nervous and the last thing Nate needed was to bail two team members out of jail. "Bail is set for both of them at—"

"We'll pay!" Sophie interjected. "Just get them out of there." The officer nodded his head and quickly vanished into the recesses of the jail.

"Well," Hardison began. "At least the charges aren't kidnapping." Nate death glared him and Hardison quickly shut up. A few moments later, Parker emerges with a little girl in her arms. Sophie immediately rushed to them and glanced over them, like a mother looking for wounds on her child. Seemingly satisfied after a few seconds, she then settled on a death glare.

"Parker," She growled. "You had us all worried! What were you thinking?" Parker ignored her and instead smiled as she rushed over to Eliot.

"Eliot, look!" The little girl met the hitter's gaze and Eliot can't help but be pulled into her sea-blue eyes. "This is Anna."

"Hey," Eliot muttered softly and then let his gaze go to Parker. "Where did you find her?"

"Anna was trying to get some apples from the store," Parker explained simply. "I taught her how to get some more and get out."

"And you got caught!" Nate stressed as Sophie comfortingly rubbed his back.

"Only cause we were going slow," Parker replied. "Next time, Anna and I—"

"Next time?" Echoed Hardison.

"Yeah!" Parker exclaimed. "Cause she's coming with us, right?"

No one said anything for the longest time. This girl needed to go into a government facility where they could find her a family. It would be best for the girl and that was what they need to keep in perspective. But, seeing Parker fawning over the little five year old, no one had the heart to tell her no.

"Right." Nate told her quietly and Parker grinned.

"Nate—" Sophie interrupted.

"Just for a few days until we find a good foster home."

Eliot nodded, but he couldn't stop watching Parker. He's never seen her this happy and he wondered briefly what kind of mother she would be.

"Let's go home!" Parker shouted to Eliot.

"Yeah," He replied softly. "Home."

_**Author's Note: **__Review and request please! _


	94. Request: Those Three Little Words

_**Author's Note: **__I am so sorry for taking so long to post something for this fanfic! I just needed a nice break from all the drabbles I was writing. Needless to say, I'm back! And I'm picking up where I left off with requests. This comes from __**wishyouknew222**__ who requested the line, "I love you." I hope you all enjoy!_

"I love you." His voice comes out as a whisper and she looks at him questioningly, her head tilting to the side ever so slightly.

"What?"

"I love you." It's a little bit more forceful this time and he can feel determination course through his veins. He wants her to hear what he has to say! Because she has to know his true feelings before—

"And cut!" Nate shouts and Eliot releases a breath he didn't even know he had been holding. "Parker, work on making yourself sound more love struck. And Eliot, make that first line forceful!"

"Love struck?" Parker echoes. She meets Eliot's gaze. "What does he mean?"

Eliot doesn't reply and Parker twirls over to Sophie's side, who is currently playing Parker's agent in this latest charade. He knew it was a bad idea to accept this job—even if the guy they were going to catch was a horribly cruel movie producer. In order to nail the guy, Nate had hired him to produce Nate's latest "movie". Eliot had been cast as the leading man and Parker as the star actress, but Nate had failed to mention that the fake movie they were shooting was a romantic drama.

"I love you," Eliot mumbled as he watched Parker animatedly talking to Sophie. "I love you."

It was such a simple sentence to say—only three words—why then, did his heart always flutter when he said that phrase to her? Why did he feel like that this was more than a movie—that he truly wanted to confess his feelings to Parker?

"Eliot!" Nate exclaims, fully relishing his role as the director. "Ready to do a second take?"

He's not, but he nods his head. Parker energetically bounces to her spot on the "set"—a pretty much empty room that Nate has filled with various objects—and Eliot feels his heart flutter again. He knows he shouldn't feel this away about Parker. She's supposed to be a friend, an ally, and nothing more—

But those three little words have suddenly changed everything. The more and more he thinks about them, the more and more he realizes that they are true. He does love Parker. She's beautiful, a hell of a thief, and Eliot even loves her quirks.

He's fallen for her.

"And action!" Nate shouts, but Eliot barely hears him.

"I love you." Eliot says the words naturally. He wants her to know his true feelings; he needs her to see how he feels!

"What?" Parker replies and Eliot braces himself.

"I love you."

And with that, he crosses the gap between them and kisses her.

He doesn't hear Nate call cut or hear Sophie mumble about how this wasn't a part of the script. All he knows is that he is kissing Parker and he loves her.

And for this one moment, everything is perfect.

_**Author's Note: **__So, there you go! I'm getting back into the swing of things. Thank you for your patience! As always, review and request please! _


	95. Author's Choice: Snowed In

**_Author's Note: _**_Happy holidays everyone! I know, I haven't updated since October, but my New Year's resolution is to update faster. So, anyways, I'm going to be posting holiday-themed stuff here for a bit. These chapters are NOT part of the main storyline. If you have any holiday-themed requests, let me know! I'd be glad to write lots of cute fluffy holiday-themed chapters! Please enjoy!_

This was not how he planned to spend Christmas Eve.

He knew he should've left the team's headquarters when Nate left, but Parker was still working on stuff and as much as he hated to admit it, Eliot didn't feel right about letting her be all alone on Christmas Eve. He would just keep her company until she decided she wanted to go. He was just being nice, that's it. It was nothing more than that. In fact, he was even doing it for Sophie. She had been the one who had practically begged him to stay because she was worried about Parker working too hard. Yeah, he was doing this for Sophie.

"Snowed in?" Parker questioned. "What does that mean?" She looked up at him with such wide-eyed innocence that his anger lessened just a little bit.

"It means we're not leaving here anytime soon." Eliot replied as he shut the curtain that allowed the team to take a rare look outside. Sophie had been the one who has insisted on getting a huge window. She had claimed to Nate that their headquarters were "too dark" and finally her nagging had caused Nate to relent. The team now had one huge window that let them see outside and today, Eliot was grateful that Sophie had won the battle. If he or Parker had tried to open the door, the snow would've frozen them!

"We can't leave?" Parker asked, worried. "But who will watch my money? And rob the toy store? I always rob the toy store this time of year!"

"Parker," Eliot snapped and instantly he regretted it for fear flashed in the thief's eyes. Parker sniffed and Eliot realized with a start that she was crying. His eyes widened in shock. "Look, it'll be okay." He held his hand out to her comfortingly to her. "We've got plenty of food and it's not like there is nothing to do here. Besides, the snow should be melted by tomorrow morning. We'll be able to leave soon."

"Really?" Parker questioned as she wiped a tear away.

"Yeah, don't worry," Eliot assured her. "Hey, I'll even bake something. How does that sound?" He desperately wanted to see her smile again. For some reason, her happiness was the only thing that mattered at the moment. He briefly wondered why Parker had such an effect on him, but quickly dismissed it as Parker smiled and wiped her tears away.

"Cookies?"

"Even better," Eliot replied with a huge grin on his face. "Cup cakes."

"With frosting?" Parker exclaimed.

"Yes." Eliot answered.

"That's great!" She tugged on Eliot's arm and pulled him towards the kitchen. "Will you make them now? Please?"

Eliot just laughed and let himself be tugged along.

* * *

Sophie smiled as she watched the live feed that Hardison had set up in their headquarters. She really needed to make he got an extra-special gift this year. After all, without him, she would've never been able to see the sight that was before her.

Eliot was teaching Parker how to make cupcakes!

"What are you up to?" Nate questioned as he planted a kiss on Sophie's cheek.

"I'm spying on Eliot and Parker," Sophie replied honestly. "He's teaching her how to make cupcakes."

"He is?" Nate echoed, surprised.

"Yes!" Sophie exclaimed.

"You know, Sophie, if I didn't know better," Nate began. "I would've said you planned this all out."

"Me?" Sophie asked. "Play matchmaker? Never!"

Nate chuckled dryly.

* * *

Eliot smiled as he gently put the last of the dishes in the sink. He would clean them later tomorrow, but for now, he wouldn't dare make any noise for the world.

Parker was asleep after all. She looked like an angel for her face was so serene. Her hair fell in little wisps around her face as she slept on the counter.

Eliot glanced at the clock as he pulled Parker from her chair and the counter and into his arms in order to put her down on one of the spare beds that the team often kept.

12:00.

"Merry Christmas, Parker." Eliot mumbled.

And holding Parker securely in his arms, Eliot realized just how lucky he was.

_**Author's Note: **As I said, feel free to request holiday themed chapters so long as they are NOT M-rated. Please review and request! _


	96. Author's Choice: When is Santa Coming?

_**Author's Note: **__Merry Christmas Eve everyone!_

"When is Santa gonna come?" Parker's voice was childlike and as Eliot spun around to see her, he marveled at just how beautiful she looked. Her red blanket wrapped around her like a shawl, her eyes sparkled as she met his gaze. He had noticed that she had this effect on him more and more and Eliot found that it was getting hard to work with her. He blamed it on the holidays, of course. It had just be the Christmas spirit in the air making him feel like this. "Eliot?"

"Huh?" Eliot mumbled, startled by her.

"When is Santa gonna come?" Eliot looked at her strangely. Santa? Why on Earth was she asking about Santa? Didn't she know the truth?

"Parker," Eliot began slowly. "Santa isn't-"

"Coming right now!" Sophie exclaimed suddenly as she wrapped an arm around Eliot's shoulder. She shot him and icy glare. "Santa comes when you're asleep, Parker."

"Oh, really?" Parker replied. "Then, I'm going to bed!" She scurried off and slammed a door behind her. Eliot didn't have time to tell her that it was only 3:00 in the afternoon.

"Eliot," Sophie said harshly. "You almost ruined it!"

"Ruined what?" Eliot questioned, completely lost.

"Parker's innocence!" Sophie snapped. "If you had finished your sentence, poor Parker would've been devastated!"

"I'm sorry, Sophie," Eliot began. "But you lost me." Sophie sighed exasperatedly and threw her hands up in defeat.

"Parker's always believed in Santa," Sophie replied. "She was in foster homes, but even through that, she's always believed in Santa. And you are not going to ruin it for her!"

"Hey, Sophie?"

"What?"

Eliot smirked.

"I've got an idea."

And with that he dragged Sophie away.

_**Author's Note: **What's Eliot's idea? Find out tomorrow! Merry Christmas Eve everyone! _


	97. Author's Choice: Christmas Morning

_**Author's Note: **__Merry Christmas! I hope you're having a great day! Please enjoy!_

Eliot grinned triumphantly as Sophie placed the finishing touch on their Christmas surprise for Parker.

"She's gonna love this," Sophie muttered. "This was an amazing idea Eliot."

"I can't wait to see her face," Eliot mumbled and Sophie gave him an all-knowing look. Feeling slightly uncomfortable, Eliot coughed and then gruffly added; "We should go to bed too."

"Whatever you say," Sophie said with a smirk. "Night."

* * *

Parker couldn't believe her eyes.

"Santa," Parker mumbled. "Santa came!" She jumped up and down with joy. She hadn't doubted that he would come, but to be honest, she had been a little worried. Nate had given her a strange look after she had questioned him about Santa and even Sophie had acted strange.

But now, it didn't matter. Santa had found her-just like all those other times before.

"Wow," Eliot mumurred as he stood beside her. "This is incredible."

"Santa did it!" Parker exclaimed. "He came and left all of this for us!"

It was a truly an incredible slight to behold. The tree-which had been empty of lights the night before-was lit up like fireworks during the fourth of July. Presents of every shape and size lied below it and all were decorated in beautiful paper of all colors.

"What is all this?" Nate questioned as he walked in from his bedroom.

"Yeah," Hardison added. "Did we-?"

"Santa came!" Parker quickly told him. "Santa brought us gifts! Can we open them, please? Please?" Nate chuckled dryly and nodded his head. Parker energetically handed everyone a present and then quickly ripped into her.

* * *

Two hours later, all the presents had been opened and Parker smiled contentedly. Nate was explaining something about her new lock-picking tools and Eliot loved watching the look on her face.

"You did well," Sophie told him, placing a hand on his shoulders. "I've never seen her so happy."

"You helped," Eliot told her and Sophie shook her head. "You did!"

"You came up with the plan," Sophie said firmly. "Why did you decide to do this, by the way?"

"No reason." He lied and Sophie laughed softly.

"Sure." She said sarcastically.

"Look!" Parker suddenly exclaimed. "I got my letter!"

"Letter?" Eliot asked.

"From Santa!" Parker explained as she ripped open the envelope. Sophie exchanged a puzzled look with Eliot who simply shrugged his shoulders. "Ah, he said that Mrs. Claus is doing well!"

No one could ever explain where that letter came from.

But it didn't matter because as long as Parker was happy, that was enough for Eliot.

He just loved putting a smile on her face!

_**Author's Note: **Merry Christmas! Please review!_


	98. Request: Alive: Back Luck part 4

_**Author's Note: **__Hi everyone! Wow, it's been such a long time since I've updated this story! I'm so sorry for the long delay, truly I am. Anyways, please enjoy this chapter, a sequel to the "Bad Luck" saga and a chapter that so many of you requested that I do. Please enjoy! And I'll be back with some more requests and plot chapters soon!_

He doesn't die.

The bullet got taken out, he had stiches done, and everything is okay. According to the doctor that Nate managed to scrounge up, he came extremely close to bleeding out, but Eliot doesn't need to know the rest of the details.

He's alive, that's all that matters.

Parker stayed by his side the whole three days he was unconscious. Sophie informed him that she had refused to eat or sleep—only doing both when her body either forced her too or Sophie managed to convince her to do so. Eliot believes it as he notices the dark bags under Parker's eyes. It definitely looks like she needs a nap. While he was asleep, Nate apparently managed to stop their target and he's currently rotting in jail. Nate won't reveal what happened to the sniper that shot Eliot, muttering something vague instead. Eliot understands that he's been taken care of too and wonders whether the sniper is in a hospital or in jail. For the first hour he's awake, everyone hovers above him, watching him, as if he were some laboratory experiment. It takes all of the strength he has not to snap at them because he knows that he's scared everyone.

Finally, he's left alone—well, not really alone, Parker is still there. She does nothing for the first few minutes, but stare at him. He wants to say something to her—anything—but there's something about the haunted look in her eyes that stops him.

"I thought you died." She says it quietly and Eliot really has to strain to hear her voice. "You closed your eyes and I thought you had died." It's an admission, a broken confession given from someone pushed to the brink.

"Sorry." It's the only thing he can think to say, but he knows it's not what she wanted to hear.

"Why?" The rawness in her voice takes him off-guard.

"Why what?"

"Why did you take the bullet for me?" Her eyes pierce his and he wonders briefly why he did what he did. Was it simply because she was a member of his team or was it more than that? Before he can even answer, Parker grabs his hand and holds it within his own. "Don't do it again."

"Parker—" She appears as if she's about to cry and he wants nothing more to comfort her.

"Eliot, don't hurt yourself for me!" Her tone is desperate now; tears are spilling down her cheeks. "I should be hurt and not you! Promise me you won't do something like this again!"

"I can't promise that." He could, but it would be a lie and he vowed to himself a long time ago that he wouldn't lie to her. Because even though he had almost died, if someone suddenly burst through the door with a gun aimed at Parker, he would he shot all over again for her.

"Eliot—" She's sobbing now and he still can't lie to her, not even when she's like this. So, he settles for placing her hand on his heart and letting her feel it beating. It seems to calm her a bit and he smiles at her.

"We're family, Parker," He informs her calmly. "And family does stuff like this." She nods and just allows herself to feel the beat under her hand.

"You're alive," She whispers. "You're okay."

"Yeah," Eliot replies. "I am."

And they stay like that—him looking at her, and her listening to his heart beat—for a few more minutes, until Parker's eyes unexpectedly close and she finally succumbs to her body's need for sleep. He lets her stay there, with her head on his chest and allows himself to fall back into the void as well.

He's alive and so is Parker—that's all he needs to know to keep going on.

That's all he'll ever need to know.

_**Author's Note: **__I'll be updating soon! As always, please review and request! _


	99. Request: Anything for You

_**Author's Note: **__Hello again! I'm back with another request. I'm trying to update this story as much as possible. So, just a note, if you requested Christmas drabbles, I will do them! I'm planning on doing them for Christmas in July! So, please be patient and know that I will get back to them soon. I'm also going to be going back to the main plot again soon so stay tuned! Anyways, this is a great request from __**AllOverTheWorld**__ who asked for "Parker has nightmare, about her past or summen, and Elliot is quite sure what to do (at first)." I had a lot of fun with this one! I hope you enjoy!_

He notices it at midnight as he's walking in the door to the office. He's been out trailing their latest target, trying to gather some information and when his target finally got home, Eliot decided that he should just crash at their headquarters.

He hadn't realized that someone else was there with him.

The sound of someone sobbing pulls him from his the fog that has taken up residence in his mind. It's been a late night and he would love nothing more than to just fall asleep right where he stood. But the sobbing increases and he knows that he has to find the source of it before sleep can be even considered an option.

It takes all of five minutes to find who is sobbing—Parker, who's bundled up on the couch in layers of blankets that she's curled around her so it appears that she's almost in a cocoon of sorts. Eliot walks into the living room cautiously, so as not to startle her.

"Parker?" He forces his voice to come off as soft and soothing. The last thing he wants is for her to shut down and run away from him. The figure in the blankets stiffens before finally allowing herself to meet his gaze.

"Eliot?" Her voice sounds raw, as if she had been sobbing for months at the top of her lungs. It takes a few seconds for the realization to flash in her eyes and when it does, she quickly rubs the tears away and plasters a fake smile on her face. "Hi!"

It pains him to see how she's faking being happy, but he decides—for now anyways—not to comment on it and to simply let her decide how she wanted this to go. He takes another step into the room and Parker practically throws herself off the couch and begins to laugh.

"Parker, what's—?"

"Nothing!" Parker exclaims. "I'm hungry! Are you? Do you want some cereal?" She moves towards the kitchen without even waiting for his response and he follows her, bewildered, but concerned for her. Parker hums to herself as doles out the _Lucky Charms_ and then pretends to be perfectly fine while she forces herself to eat the cereal. Eliot plays along, but he knows that there has to be something he could do for her—anything—but what that something is, he isn't sure.

They go along with this charade for a bit, but when Parker starts crying into her bowl of milk, Eliot decides that enough is enough. He gently pulls her into his arms and holds her. She clutches at his shirt and sobs, a stain of tears tying his shirt a darker grey, but he doesn't care.

This is what she needs and he's more than willing to comfort her.

"What happened?" He asks quietly and Parker continues to sob. After a few minutes, he hears her crying out a phrase but the only word he can catch is "nightmare". That explains it then.

Everyone in the Leverage Team had dark pasts—there wasn't one among them that hadn't been plagued by nightmares of past sins during one night or another. Each member had a way of dealing with these nightmares—Eliot, for example, would run twice as hard for twice as long. He's not sure how Parker has dealt with her nightmares before.

But for now, he holds her in his arms and lets her cry because this is what she needs right now.

She needs him right now and he's willing to be there for her.

Always.

_**Author's Note: **__I hope you enjoyed! Next time, we'll catch up with the main plot some more. Please review and request! _


	100. Request: Homecoming

_**Author's Note: **__100 chapters . . . can you believe it? When I started this story, I never even knew that I would make it to 30 chapters, let alone a 100. A lot of thanks to everyone who has reviewed this story, who has requested for this story, who has favorited/story alerted this story. I really can't thank you all for your support even when I was MIA for a bit. So, I thought really long and hard about what I wanted to do to commemorate 100 chapters and I've decided that today, I'll be doing a request and tomorrow I will be doing a triple plot segment! So, this request comes from __**CamJ **__who requested, "After being hit, Eliot lost his memory." I honestly was so excited to do this request! Memory-loss fics always have interested me. Anyways, I'm not a medical expert so if I got something wrong, sorry! So, I hope you guys enjoy and thanks for supporting me for 100 chapters!_

* * *

All in all it was a normal job.

The bad guys were an insurance company that loved to trick their clients out of their hard-earned savings. Nate had come up with a plan relatively quickly and it seemed like everything was going to end nicely and soon.

Then came the hired thugs that the insurance company kept on retainer. They weren't your run-of-the-mill security and Eliot had his hands full trying to deal with all of them. Parker had jumped into the fray too, trying to help Eliot out and she had managed to knock one guy unconscious when it happened.

Eliot was punched to the head.

Hard.

He went down and honestly, after that it was all a big blur to Parker. The rest of the guards were taken care of by a few tasers that Hardison had managed to procure and then after that, they were in an ambulance going to the hospital. Eliot hadn't moved when the paramedics had put him on the gurney and that stillness scared Parker. Eliot had never been still before—even when he slept, he would toss and turn and move all over the bed. Now, lying in the hospital bed, he seemed almost frozen.

As still as death.

"His condition is stable," The doctor had said to the team after Eliot had been put into this own room, a heart monitor steadily filling the silence in the impersonal room. "We just need to wait until he wakes up."

Waiting is the worst part as far as Parker is concerned. She's never been patient, but now she can't help but squirm in the uncomfortable hospital chair and glare at Eliot for choosing to be comatose for so long. Sophie is with her, acting the exact opposite of her with sadness seemingly engulfing her. Parker can hear Nate and Hardison outside the room discussing what to do with the insurance company.

She wants Eliot to awaken.

She doesn't want to be scared anymore. She needs him to open his eyes and tell her to stop staring at him or anything along those lines.

He needs to awaken.

* * *

When he does open his eyes, he doesn't remember anyone. He scans everyone with a defensive glint in his eyes and Parker feels her heart shatter into a million pieces. She's numb as he asks her what her name is and who she is. The only thing that comes out of her mouth is a strangled sob as she sprints out of the room.

She cries for what seems like hours before Sophie finds her. Whispering soothing words into her ear, Parker allows herself to be embraced by her longtime friend.

"It's okay," Sophie assures her. "He'll get his memory back."

Parker tries desperately to believe that, but she heard the doctor. This memory loss could vanish in hours or it could last for years and she isn't sure if she could stand Eliot looking at her as a stranger for that long. She allows herself to wallow in the sadness for ten minutes and then snaps herself out of it.

She'll make Eliot remember!

* * *

They take Eliot back to their "home" a few days after the incident. Each team member tries his or her own unique way of getting Eliot to remember. Nate has Eliot look at pictures of all the criminals he's helped take down and explains old jobs they've pulled off. Hardison shows Eliot his latest technical toys and tries to goad Eliot into wanting to test them, but the former hitter just stares at him. Sophie goes the more conventional route and shows him video clips that she's been secretly filming. Nothing seems to work and a week after Eliot's been released from the hospital, he still doesn't remember anyone or anything from his life with the Leverage team.

That's when Parker decides that it's her turn.

"Are you sure about this?" Eliot hesitantly questions as Parker double-checks his equipment.

"Not really," She tells him cheerfully as she now checks her own gear. "But jumping is fun! You used to do it with me all the time!"

"I did?" He asks in a shocked tone.

"Yep!" She lies smoothly, but frankly, she's getting desperate. The thief doesn't think she can take another day of Eliot not being Eliot. She needs to bring him back and this is the only way she can think of how to do it. Maybe the adrenaline will kick in and jolt his brain into remembering!

"Ready?" Parker takes his hand within hers and remembers her Eliot—the one that teased her, smiled at her, and baked her the best cookies that she had ever tasted. She needs that Eliot back. She has to get him back!

"No." Eliot replies, fear clearly evident on his face.

"It'll be easy!" She assures him, trying to ease his apprehension. "We jump off buildings all the time!" He eyes her oddly and mutters something about her not being normal and for a second, she allows hope to fill her.

That hope shatters when he meets her eyes again with that blank stare.

"Well, let's do this." He grumbles.

She takes off running with him hot on her heels. They jump together and for a second, it's like they're flying through the air. When they land on the other building—the equipment worked wonders—she turns around, expectantly waiting to see her Eliot.

"That was kind of fun." He mumbles, the blank stare still in place.

Parker's grin falls.

He still doesn't remember.

* * *

She's become very desperate.

Every plan she comes up with to make Eliot remember fails and as time passes, Parker worries that she won't ever be able to get Eliot to remember her. Sophie has assured her multiple times that everything will work out in the end, but Parker can see in her eyes that her closest friend is lying. Everyone is starting to lose hope and that terrifies her. It was her fault that Eliot got hurt in the first place. She has to fix this situation and get Eliot back to normal.

"Uh, Parker, right?" She meets the "new" Eliot's gaze and tries not to break down crying at the sight of the coldness in his eyes. Her Eliot had nothing but warmth whenever he met her eyes.

"Yeah." She keeps her answers short so he won't hear how close she is to breaking down and losing it.

"I baked these for you." He hands her a small plate of cookies and Parker can't keep the surprise off her face.

"What—?"

"I don't remember much," He confesses as he runs a hand through his hair. "It's all kind of fuzzy, but I do recall making these with you." His lips turn up in a smile. "Except, you kept eating all the cookie dough."

Without thinking, she throws herself at him and he almost topples to the floor before embracing her in a hug.

There's still hope after all.

* * *

It's a slow process, but gradually Eliot starts to remember things.

He'll be talking to Nate and he'll mention how hard the guards were at the Lancaster job they pulled off a few months ago or he'll be laughing with Hardison over a performance Sophie gave during a job that took place last year. He starts cooking again and practices his fighting techniques and slowly, but surely, her Eliot begins to return.

A month after the whole ordeal, he walks into headquarters and just stares at her. She quirks an eyebrow and is about to ask him what he's doing when a determined look flashes in his eyes. He bridges the small space between them, pulls her to him, and kisses her. There's no need to ask for confirmation if he finally remembers everything, the way he's kissing her so passionately proves that he does. When he finally releases her, he grins and the warmth is back in his eyes.

"I missed you." She confesses, a few tears rolling down her cheeks.

"I'm back." He tells her.

"Want to go jumping?" She asks quietly, just needing to confirm once more to make sure that Parker isn't dreaming this.

"Hell no." He chuckles dryly and she joins in.

"Yeah, you're back."

He holds her once more and Parker feels like the luckiest girl in the world. He's returned to her.

And all is right in her world.

* * *

_**Author's Note: **__Thanks again for supporting this story! Here's to reaching 100 more chapters! If you have the time, please review and request! Tomorrow, I'll give you three chapters of plot, so please look forward to that. _


	101. Fortress

_**Author's Note: **__As promised, three chapters of plot. And tomorrow, I'll do a request. I've made an update schedule for this story so expect updates every day, be they requests or plot. Please enjoy!_

* * *

They drive.

"You want to fill me in on what's going on?" Nate questions as he meets the hitter's gaze. Eliot simply looks away and Nate sighs. Ever since figuring out where Parker is, Eliot has shut down completely. He refuses to speak and refuses to answer any of Nate's questions. Nate knows this is because he feels responsible for this whole situation.

"Nate?" Nate spins around to Hardison in the driver's seat. "We've got a problem." Iron bars, angry dogs, and some of the best security guards keep the team from Parker.

Their thief is trapped in a fortress.

* * *

"You won't get away with this." Parker informs Melissa. Sophie would be so proud, seeing Parker put up such a good performance of being calm when in reality, she's breaking inside. She's scared, but not for herself.

This woman wants to kill Eliot.

Parker can't let that happen. Eliot has done so much for her. The least she could do was protect him in turn after all the times he's saved her.

"Wanna bet?" Melissa challenges. "I know Eliot. He'll come and when he does, he'll die." An image of Eliot, broken and bleeding fills Parker's mind.

She feels sick.

* * *

Nate forces himself to remain calm and take control of the situation.

"I have to go in there." Eliot mumbles, a deadly flash in his eyes.

"Dude, are you trying to kill yourself?" Hardison retorts.

"I have—"

"No one is doing anything yet," Nate commands. He can't lose his cool, not with Parker's life on the line. "Hardison, pull up anything you can on this place. I want a name and security plans." Hardison begins to furiously type away on his laptop.

"Eliot." Nate sighs.

With a quiet voice, Eliot begins to tell the story of Melissa and Thomas.

* * *

_**Author's Note: **__Tomorrow, a request. If you have time, please review and request! Thanks!_


	102. Request: A Question

_**Author's Note: **__Hi everyone! Here's today's chapter, a request from __**jade nimenzo**__, who requested, "What is sexting?" I must say, I was a bit stumped with this one. Still, I hope you enjoy! Also, I'm running low on requests! If you have any prompts that you would like turned into a chapter (or possibly a saga), please leave a request in your review! To everyone else who has requested, I'm working my way though and I am pretty close to finishing all of them._

* * *

"What is sexting?"

He does a spit-take and his milk goes flying into the air. It's literally the last thing he had ever expected her to ask him. As soon as he recovers from the shock—because why the hell would Parker be asking him about this—he faces the thief who seems unapologetic.

"What?" She huffs and sighs like he's the one that's causing a problem.

"What is sexting?" He really doesn't want to have this conversation with her right now—or ever.

"Ask Sophie."

"She's out shopping." Parker retorts and Eliot curses the resident actress.

"Then, ask when she comes back!" He growls.

"Why can't you tell me?" She pouts.

"Because!" He retorts.

"That's not an answer!" She challenges and he agrees with her, but frankly, he's running low on options and he needs to end this conversation right now. "What is it, Eliot?"

"Hey, is that a new zip line over there?" He points behind her and Parker predictably looks, giving Eliot the chance he needed to escape.

"Where?" He slips into the other room and then out the front door. He waits ten minutes to calm down before heading back inside, checking to see if Parker was waiting for him first.

"I told you," He hears Hardison tell Nate, taking 20 dollars from their leader. "I knew he wouldn't be able to handle that."

"Guess you were right." Nate sighs.

"Do I get my new zip line equipment now?" Parker asks energetically.

"Yeah, you do," Nate replies, patting the thief's head. "Way to go, Parker. Pretty soon, you'll be rivaling Sophie's performances."

"A bet?" Eliot hisses as he steps into the room. "This was a bet?"

"Yes," Nate answers, unashamedly. "And you just cost me 20 bucks." Eliot curses before walking to the kitchen to pout. He pulls out one of the old cooking books and looks for a recipe that requires a lot of chopping.

"Are you mad at me?" Parker questions, sadness in her eyes. "We thought it would be funny—," She appears as if she's about to cry and Eliot can't stand to see her like that so he smiles and assures her that he's not mad at her. He could never be mad at her. "Can I help?"

"Sure."

So, they stand together in the kitchen, chopping carrots and all the anger over being the loser of an unknown bet melts away.

Parker has that kind of effect on him.

* * *

_** Author's Note: **__So, tomorrow more plot! Please send in those requests via your review! Please check to make sure that your request hasn't already been done before submitting. Here are the guidelines once more in case you've forgotten how to submit a request. 1) __**I DO NOT ACCEPT M-rated requests**__. Please only give me T or below. 2) A request can consist of a word (ex: fear), a phrase (ex: Cookies are yummy!), or a situation (ex: Parker and Eliot at a club). 3) To submit a request, simply place it in your review. I fulfill requests in the order they were submitted. Thanks! If you have time please review/request! _


	103. Risky

_**Author's Note: **__Thanks for all the new requests! Here's some more plot!_

After what seems like hours, Melissa leaves which gives Parker enough time to finally break out of the cuffs that are keeping her chained to the bed. Freed, she takes a cursory glance at her surroundings. Iron bars on the windows, guards pacing outside—what was this place? She has no choice but to try and move past the guards. It's risky, but it's her only choice. It's a good thing that she's had plenty of experience breaking out of places.

Placing a hand on the doorknob, she prepares herself.

Then, she's out of the room and making her escape.

_**Author's Note: **__Request tomorrow! Please review/request if you have a second!_


	104. Close

_**Author's Note: **__I finished the next request, but I still need to edit it, so here's more plot for today!_

The guards pass by at intervals of 30 seconds.

That gives Parker enough time to get from the hallway, down the stairs and towards the kitchen. She's been doing her best to keep silent, but the panic that's trying to burst its way out of her is making her sloppy. She's almost running into things as she desperately searches for a way out. The kitchen has a screening glass door that allows her to see outside.

"Well, look what I found." Parker freezes.

"Melissa, let me go!"

"Can't, sorry." Parker then decides she has no choice.

She has to fight.

_**Author's Note: **__Next chapter, a request dealing with Parker's ex-boyfriend! Please review and request! _


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